


Catch Me, Hold Me, Save Me, Love Me

by Ikira



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Barebacking, Basically this was written to make Keith suffer and that's the way we like it, Boys struggling to use their words, But smooches makes it better, Galra Keith (Voltron), Gender-Neutral Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, Hurt Keith (Voltron), Hurt/Comfort, Lots of Hurt Keith, M/M, Mild to Moderate Violence, Physical Abuse, Riding, Sexy outfits that are not sexy in the circumstances they are used, Slavery, So yeah eventually things are okay, The Galra are assholes and no one is surprised, Transformation, Undercover Missions, mild to moderate body horror
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-28
Updated: 2017-08-03
Packaged: 2018-12-08 02:22:55
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 33,447
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11636961
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ikira/pseuds/Ikira
Summary: Keith had thought that finding out he had Galra blood after activating his luxite knife was the end of it. It turns out that having Galra blood is a little bit more complicated than that, and that his knife isn't the only thing that's going to go through some physical changes. Thankfully(?) there's someone there to get him through the worst of the experience, even if Keith would rather suffer on his own than be seen like this by Lance of all people.But said changes may be a bit of a blessing in disguise. Because the team has a new mission coming up that requires some undercover work, and Keith's new look is absolutely perfect for the job. Assuming everything doesn't go horribly wrong, of course...





	1. heavy breath, heavy feet

**Author's Note:**

> Yeah, of course I managed to write a multi-chapter fic spinning off of the end of Season 2 when Season 3 is only ONE FRIGGIN WEEK AWAY and about to turn this into a non-canon mess. But sometimes inspiration just bites you in the butt and you just gotta write Keith suffering. You just gotta.
> 
> So consider this my celebration countdown to Season 3. I'm aiming to have the whole fic posted before next Friday, so at least it'll be done before canon shoots it down. I'm also posting it to celebrate Lance's b-day, and because it's been a while since I wrote a Klance fic and I missed writing for this ship. I'm sure we're all gonna have a great time.
> 
> Thank you as always to the wonderful **sexythewalkingcatfish** for being my awesome beta. And for kicking my ass to make sure I got this fic done in time. I couldn't do this without you.
> 
> Alrighty, who's ready for some fun! (Spoiler alert: not Keith)

Keith really should have noticed it sooner, but after their attack on Zarkon and Shiro’s disappearance and their struggle to find him, he’d just had too much going on to really pay attention to the funny feelings he was getting.

He blamed the way his fingertips tingled on how hard he’d been working in the training room, trying to master his new luxite blade that he wasn’t even sure he deserved. He assumed that the itch under his skin was due to drying sweat, after spending hours shooting through the stars in Red, searching for some sign of the Galra, Shiro, or both. His teeth hurt because he was probably grinding them in his sleep, stressed out by the sudden pressure being placed upon him as Allura’s comments about their lack of a Black Paladin and meaningful looks became more and more pointed.

Really, he probably should have suspected something was wrong with him, but there was just so much wrong with everything else it had been pushed to the back of his mind.

He kind of regretted ignoring it until now, though.

When the first jolt of pain shot through his stomach, his immediate thought had not been, _Oh no, something really bad is about to happen._ It instead had been, _Oh no, what the hell was in Hunk’s cooking tonight?_

He groaned to himself, halfway back from the training room with his Bayard and luxite blades tucked into his belt and his sweat-soaked shirt dangling from one fist. He really didn’t have time for a bout of food poisoning on top of everything else right now. His free hand came up to rub at his stomach, but when he didn’t feel anything past that first spike, he decided he’d maybe just pushed himself too hard, and a good night’s sleep was all he needed.

The second jolt hit him as he was turning the corner to the corridor that housed the Paladins’ quarters, and he fell to his knees with a gasp as the pain lanced through him like fire through his nerves. His head spun and his vision hazed over as agony rushed through every inch of his body.

When it finally passed, he found himself on his hands and knees staring down at the floor, panting heavily, sweating hard, and shaking. Little droplets of sweat shook free from his dripping hair to splatter on the floor below his hanging head. He tried to focus on them, but his eyesight was going a bit fuzzy, the edges going dark before everything seemed to get brighter all at once. The pain was gone but he still felt like he might throw up.

Somehow it seemed only fitting that he’d managed to collapse right outside the door to the room that had been Shiro’s.

Breathing hard, Keith tried to take stock of himself. The pain had passed for the moment, it seemed, but he still felt incredibly weak, and all of his strange symptoms from before were returning, but a hundred times worse. He felt like there were ants crawling under his skin, while his teeth and jaw ached like he’d been chewing glass. He hissed in a mixture of discomfort and confusion, trying to figure out what was wrong with him. Could food poisoning really do this?

He tried to push himself to his feet, but he only managed to stand for a moment before his knees suddenly gave, and he collapsed heavily against the wall. _Shit_ , he thought to himself, his head feeling like it was full of cotton, yet at the same time like it weighed a million pounds. _Shit, something is really wrong with me_.

He sluggishly raised his head, trying to find the door to his own quarters through his swimming vision. His addled brain told him that he just needed to get to his room. He could lay down there and be as sick as he wanted, but he needed to get to his room first. Couldn’t pass out in the hallway where he’d be exposed, he needed to get somewhere safe first. Only then could he let go, let his guard down.

But his vision was getting so spotty, everything alternating between being too dark and far too bright, and it was hard to see the details around him. His hand brushed against a door, and he thought it was still Shiro’s. If that door was Shiro’s, that meant his was the next one…right? Right, he was pretty sure that was the order. They hadn’t changed anything since Shiro vanished, so his room _should_ still be the next one…wasn’t it? With a groan, he shook his head, telling himself he was overthinking things. His hand planted firmly against the corridor wall, as both support and a way to find his room, he started walking. His breath came out as wet panting as his body seemed to get weaker with each step.

He felt like he walked a mile before his fingers brushed against the frame of a doorway. He gasped as the stimulation shot through his fingertips like he’d been cut, but a blurry glance at his hand showed no bleeding. Maybe it was more like a papercut? Whatever, he’d found his room. Now it was time to go inside, flop down on the bed, and die apparently.

But when he pressed his hand against the pad next to the door, the door didn’t whoosh open like it was supposed to. Keith blinked blearily at the pad, wondering why it was making that angry noise at him, and tried again, figuring he just hadn’t been pressing firmly enough. When yet _again_ he was rejected, Keith let out an angry snarl, and pressed against the pad as hard as he could.

There was a crack, an electric whine and a series of sad-sounding beeps, and then the door opened. Keith momentarily wondered what had made those noises, but he quickly forgot all about it when the cool darkness of his room was revealed. He stumbled inside like a zombie, clutching at his stomach as another round of pain started to build up in his gut. His entire focus was on the bed, aiming to get to it, collapse on it, and give up on everything.

But the bed was already occupied.

“Wha…what?” a sleepy voice came out of the darkness, followed by the soft sound of rustling sheets. A figure rose up into a sitting position, sheets pooling around a trim waist. “What the… _Keith?”_

Keith froze mid-step, his brain to overwhelmed by pain to do much more than say _???_ repeatedly on loop. He had just enough awareness to pick up a few unfamiliar details about the room – the way the bed was on the opposite side, the brown jacket slung over the desk chair, the selection of styling and skin care products on the shelves – to realize that he wasn’t in his quarters. He’d somehow stumbled into Lance’s room. How had he managed to do that? Lance’s room was on the opposite side of the hall from his. Had he really gotten that turned around?

 _At least now I know why the door wasn’t letting me in_ , he thought absently to himself.

“Keith?!” Lance repeated again, sounding much more awake now. “What the hell are you doing in my room?!”

Keith opened his mouth to reply, _I don’t know, I don’t want to be in your stupid room_ , but all that came out was a pained moan, and then he sunk down to his knees, unable to keep himself upright anymore. The room was spinning around him, and he really, really hoped he didn’t throw up all over Lance’s floor. He’d never hear the end of it.

“Holy – Keith?” Lance let out a curse, his voice becoming muffled as a ringing noise began to grow in Keith’s ears. “Keith? What happened? What – what’s wrong?” Keith’s head hung down between his shoulders, too heavy for him to lift anymore, but he could hear the sounds of Lance tossing aside his covers, the slap of bare feet on the cool floor as Lance hopped out of bed and rushed to his side. Lance’s knobby kneecaps slammed into his line of sight as Lance fell to his knees in front of him.

“Keith?” Lance called to him, sounding calm and soothing with just the tiniest hint of panic under the surface. “Keith, can you hear me?”

Keith couldn’t speak beyond a breathy gasp, so he just nodded.

“Okay. Keith, what happened? What’s wrong?” Lance’s hands fluttered over his shoulders, as if he wanted to clutch them, but he wasn’t sure if that would make things worse.

“Hurts,” Keith managed to choke out, his arm around his stomach tightening. “Everything…hurts.”

That seemed to push Lance into action, because his hands came down to rest firmly on Keith’s shoulders, helping to push him upright a little. “Show me,” Lance demanded, his eyes darting over Keith’s bare chest and stomach, searching for a sign of a wound. “Did the training drones injure you?”

Keith lost the ability to speak again, so he merely shook his head. Lance tried to delicately pull his arm away from his stomach, and Keith flinched back at first, but when Lance’s grip on his wrist became more firm, he let his arm be dragged away.

As Lance started doting on him, Keith couldn’t help but feel oddly… _safe_ now. Even though he felt like he was dying, something inside him said it was okay, as long as he was here. As long as Lance was here. He let his eyes slip closed and tried very hard not to focus on that thought.

 

==

 

“…no bleeding,” Lance murmured to himself. His blue eyes roamed over Keith’s half-naked body clinically, from his belly to his shoulders, down each of his arms, his hands following along and checking for any wounds. When he found nothing on Keith’s front, he let Keith bend over so he could check his back as well.

“I don’t see any injuries,” Lance reported, his blue eyes wide and worried. “Are you sick? Did you eat something weird? Because, you know, I _thought_ that the food goo tonight looked a little bit off, it was just a bit _too green_ but Pidge said I was crazy and Hunk looked like he might cry when I pointed it out but I still thought it tasted a bit off and now you’re here looking like you’re dying and – ”

Keith groaned, pressing his face more firmly into his knees.

“Right,” Lance cut himself off mid-rant. “Right. You are…sick. Probably need some help ASAP. Let’s get some.” He stood, heading for the intercom in each of their bedrooms that connected them to the bridge. As he pressed down on the call button, he suddenly whirled around on Keith and pointed an accusing finger at him. “But man, if you get me sick as well, I’m going to kick your _ass_ , Keith, I swear to god.”

He was interrupted by Coran’s voice crackling through the intercom. _“_ _Lance_ _?”_ the jovial voice rang out, slightly tinny and clogged with static. The system could probably use an update. _“_ _Is everything alright?”_

“I’m okay, but Keith’s here and he’s not,” Lance quickly explained. “He just showed up in my room out of nowhere and now he’s just sitting on the floor. I think he’s sick. He’s running really hot.” As he spoke, Lance kept looking back at Keith, checking on him every few seconds as if to make sure he hadn’t keeled over and died while Lance wasn’t watching.

 _“Oh no! Can you get him to the infirmary? I can set it up automatically from here, so all you’ll have to do is stick him in a pod when you get there. Although…_ _”_ Coran suddenly trailed off as something occurred to him. _“_ _To be honest, I’m not completely certain the healing pods will work for him. While we have enough humans on board now that we could calibrate one of the pods for your biology, Keith is a bit more…unique_ _.”_ Which was the polite way of saying Keith was some crazy Galra-Human bastard hybrid and they had no idea what the hell species he actually counted as.

“Will it hurt him?” Lance asked, sounding even less calm than before.

 _“I…don’t know_ _,”_ Coran admitted reluctantly.

Lance started at Keith crumpled up on his bedroom floor for a moment, gnawing at his lower lip for a moment as he thought hard, and then he seemed to come to a decision. “Forget it, Coran,” he said. “I’m not risking it. We can’t lose another Paladin so soon. I’ll just take care of him here.”

 _“Are you sure?_ _”_ Coran asked.

“Yeah. I’ve got him,” Lance said, his voice and expression determined. “Thanks though.”

There was a small pause, and then the sound of Coran sighing. _“_ _Well, alright then,_ _”_ he said reluctantly. _“But comm me if there’s any changes. In the meantime I’ll try to get a hold of Kolivan. He might have some idea of what’s going on. Might be a Galra thing.”_

“Great idea, thanks Coran!” Lance cut the connection after saying goodbye, and then turned back to his sick teammate still huddled in a pathetic mess on the floor. Slowly he let out a deep breath, a teeny bit daunted by the task at hand. “Okay. Okay, I’ve got this.”

He knelt down next to Keith again, resting one hand on Keith’s bare shoulder while the other pressed against Keith’s damp forehead. He drew a sharp breath through his teeth when he felt how hot Keith was, and he quickly started looking around the room for supplies to help.

“Keith? Buddy? Are you still with me?” As he spoke, he looked towards the bed, and then to his en suite bathroom. Would it be better to get Keith into bed? Or get him into the tub and try to cool him off? Although his bathroom was luxurious if he did say so himself, the tub was pretty small, and it wouldn’t be very comfortable to sit in. But Keith was getting _really_ hot.

“…yeah,” Keith breathed out, so quiet that Lance wouldn’t have been able to hear him if he wasn’t sitting so close. His eyes were closed, but they fluttered briefly, as if he was trying to open them and failing.

“Keith. I think I need to get you into the tub. You’re burning up.” Lance pressed himself against Keith’s side, carefully maneuvering them so that one of Keith’s arms was slung over his shoulder. “I’m gonna help you stand up, but you gotta work with me, okay? I don’t think I can carry you by myself. Not without hurting either you or myself, anyways. Probably you.”

Keith let out a tired groan, but started to push upwards. Lance rose as well, grabbing Keith around the waist with his closer arm and hooking his thumb in Keith’s belt loop for extra grip. Slowly, sluggishly, the two of them began to rise.

They made it upright. There was a short pause as Lance adjusted his grip and Keith tried not to swoon, and then Lance took a careful step forward. Keith dragged his feet along. Another short step, another shuffle. Slowly they made their way across the room towards Lance’s bathroom.

They had just reached the doorway when Keith suddenly hissed in pain and collapsed in on himself. Lance yelped, struggling to catch Keith, and managed to turn their fall into a controlled slump. They ended up pressed against the bedroom wall next to the bathroom door, Keith leaning against it while Lance hovered awkwardly over him.

“I can’t,” Keith breathed, sounding so pathetic and exhausted that Lance almost didn’t recognize him. “I can’t.”

“Okay. That’s okay, that’s perfectly fine,” Lance told him, holding on to his panic by the tips of his fingernails. He began to pull back, leaving Keith slumped against the wall like a broken doll. “You stay right here then and I’ll…I’ll just get…”

He trailed off as something caught his eye. In the dim light of the room’s night time setting, he hadn’t really noticed it before, but in the bright light spilling out of the bathroom, he could see Keith’s face more clearly now. More importantly, he could see the strange shift in colour trailing along Keith’s jawline, running down the sides of his neck towards his collarbone, like an oddly-shaped bruise. Lance’s eyes narrowed at the markings.

“Lights 50%,” he called out to the room. The lighting immediately brightened in response.

Keith let out a pained cry, his eyes squeezing shut, but Lance was occupied by studying the strange colours on Keith’s skin. His fingertips slowly traced over them, and he realized that what he’d initially assumed was a bruise was actually faint lilac skin. As he watched, the colour seemed to spread across Keith's body like ink in water, inching down Keith’s chest and up his jaw.

“Ooooh shit,” Lance summed up.

 _It’s a Galra thing, alright_ _,_ his panicked mind helpfully pointed out.

Just then, the spreading purple reached Keith’s ears, and Keith let out a cry as they suddenly twitched in a way Lance had never seen human ears move before. He had a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach that he knew what was coming.

“Oh god,” he whispered. And then, because he didn’t know what else to do, he reached out and pulled Keith into his arms. “Hang on to me,” he whispered against the top of Keith’s head, pressing his face into Keith’s sweat-dampened hair. “Hang on to me.”

He wasn’t sure if Keith actually heard him, but Keith’s arms still came up to encircle his back. Then they suddenly grew tight, Keith’s fingers hooking into Lance’s sleep shirt and twisting. Lance squeezed his eyes shut, bracing himself.

And then Keith started to scream.

 

==

 

Lance didn’t know how long it lasted. The screams would come in waves, as parts of Keith’s body shifted. Lance kept his eyes squeezed shut the whole time, unable to watch, but he couldn’t block out the _sounds_. Even under Keith’s screaming, he could hear it. The gurgle and crunch as Keith’s organs and bones shifted. He felt it when Keith’s ears suddenly seemed to crawl up his head, pulled by muscles that hadn’t been there before, stretching and elongating to brush up against Lance’s chest. He heard the soft _plink-plonk_ of Keith’s human teeth dropping to the floor like loose coins, felt Keith jerk in his arms as Keith’s gums tore open and new fangs took their place. He bit his lip in pain as Keith’s nails lifted off of his fingers, claws growing like thorns to burst out from beneath them, their sharp tips digging into Lance’s back despite the shirt he wore. He fought back the urge to be sick as Keith’s body seemed to ripple and shift beneath his hands as the changes overtook him. It went on and on, and Lance could do nothing but hang on and pray for it to end.

It _felt_ like it took hours, but however long they had been sitting there, eventually Keith’s screams turned into tired cries, and then weak whimpers, and then just harsh breathing. When his death grip on Lance’s back finally seemed to loosen, Lance dared to pull back. He told himself that he knew what to expect, that he was prepared, but he still flinched when he caught sight of Keith’s face.

Dark blood ran from Keith’s now-golden eyes like tears. His lips were coated with splattered blood as well, trailing from where he’d spat out his old teeth. His new ears had come in long and covered in fur, but they drooped with exhaustion. Every inch of him was covered in a sheen of sweat tinted slightly with blood, making his purple skin look almost pink. He was an absolute mess. The only part of him that seemed to be unchanged was his dark raven hair.

Of _course_ Keith would manage to go through a traumatic Galra transformation and the mullet would make it out unscathed. Of _course._

Lance was pretty sure he himself didn’t look much better, though. Keith had managed to get both blood and sweat all over him, his back was clawed up, and one of Keith’s lost teeth had managed to land on Lance’s knee. But instead of freaking out about it like he really, _really_ wanted to, Lance merely took a deep breath to calm himself. And then another deep breath. And then another.

He needed a lot of calming.

“Okay,” he said carefully once he was sure he could speak without screaming or crying. His voice was hoarse after sitting so long without talking. “I’m not going to ask you if you’re okay because you’re clearly _not_ and that would be stupid. But is it over?”

Keith was trembling like a horse after the Kentucky Derby, and Lance was about ninety-nine percent sure he was ten seconds from passing out, but he managed a weak, albeit hesitant, nod.

“Does that mean you’re not sure?” Lance asked, figuring out quickly that they were pretty much on a yes/no question basis at this point. Even if Keith _could_ talk, he wasn’t sure he wanted Keith to try. At one point his screaming had gotten cut off as his vocal chords shifted, and Lance didn’t quite know what would come out when Keith finally could speak again.

Keith paused, and then nodded again. His eyes were the same golden colour as the rest of the Galra that Lance had seen, but he’d managed to retain his human irises, so Lance could still read his expression. Keith looked pretty freaked out, understandably, so Lance told himself firmly to _get a grip_ because Keith really needed him right now and they couldn’t afford to have both of them losing their minds. Lance could take his turn to have a meltdown later.

“Okay.” Lance breathed, letting his eyes slide shut for a moment as he tried to think. “Okay. Well, it _looks_ like it’s over. You’re…pretty much as Galra as you’re gonna get.” Both he and Keith briefly glanced at Keith’s body, taking in the changes. “Yeah. I don’t think there’s much more coming,” Lance continued. “But if you start to feel weird again, you gotta let me know, okay?”

Keith nodded. Lance achingly pulled himself to his feet, groaning as his spine popped and his sleep shirt rubbed against the cuts on his back. Once he was upright, he held a hand out to Keith.

“Think you can stand now?” Lance asked, giving Keith a worried look. Keith eyed Lance’s hand, looked him in the face, and then looked back to Lance’s hand again as if he was trying to decide if Lance could be trusted. But before Lance could get annoyed or offended, Keith lifted one shaky hand towards Lance’s own. Lance clasped Keith’s hand in a tight grip, ignoring the way Keith’s new claws brushed against the soft skin of his wrist, and heaved backwards. Keith came up surprisingly quickly, so fast that Lance almost lost his balance for a moment. They managed to stabilize themselves against each other, Keith’s hand on Lance’s shoulder while Lance grabbed Keith around the waist.

“Huh. Well isn’t that interesting,” Lance commented casually, almost to himself. When Keith gave him a puzzled look, he seemed to realize he’d spoken aloud, because he flushed and glanced away. “It’s just…I’ve always been taller than you. But now?”

Keith’s eyes went wide as he noticed the same thing Lance had. They were now eye-to-eye, the same height.

“Heh. Galra growth spurt,” Lance chuckled. “Except you’re still really short for a Galra. Galra Allura could sit on you.”

It was a weak attempt at humor and lightening the mood, but Keith seemed to appreciate it all the same based on the way he huffed and rolled his eyes, smiling faintly. Lance counted it as a win. And he told himself he was still _slightly_ taller. The teeniest bit. He’d take what he could get.

“Let’s head into the bathroom, we’re both gross,” Lance finally suggested, getting them back on track. He slung Keith’s arm over his shoulder like they’d tried last time, and started slowly walking towards the bathroom again. This time they made it, Keith squinting at the bright lighting shining down on them.

Lance pulled Keith over to the shower stall on the far side of the room, propping Keith up against the wall for a moment as he pulled the stall door open. Then he glanced over at Keith, giving him a long look.

“Think you can shower by yourself, or do you need my help? And no shame if you do, you look like a breeze could knock you over.”

Keith paused for a second, his brow screwing up in concentration as he thought about it. Then, with no small amount of effort, he pushed himself away from the wall, out of Lance’s grip, taking a few shaky steps towards the shower stall unaided. He was shivering, but he managed to stand up and walk on his own.

“I…can do it,” he said slowly, breathlessly, his words coming out as a whisper. He grabbed at the shower stall, gripping the smooth tiles for support, but he didn’t fall. Lance merely raised an eyebrow at him.

“You sure?” he asked again. “Because if you fall in the shower, I will definitely be mocking you, traumatic experience or not.”

Keith just rolled his eyes again – and Lance was strangely pleased that he could still see Keith doing that – and started tugging at the zipper on his pants. “I’m _fine_ ,” he insisted, his voice weak and reedy, but coming out much more strongly now.

“Fine, fine, I can take a hint,” Lance grumbled, throwing up his hands in defeat. “But seriously. So much mocking. You better not fall.”

He turned away to give Keith his privacy, and to head back into his room to get a change of clothes. It was a good thing he wasn’t too fond of this PJ set because they were _trashed_ , ripped up by Keith’s claws and stained with his blood. Lance was already pulling the ruined shirt over his head as he started to leave, but he jerked to a stop when he heard Keith let out a sharp hiss.

“What?” Lance immediately turned back around, on edge and ready to see Keith collapsed on the floor again, bleeding and writhing. “What?”

But Keith was looking at _him_ with concern, as if Lance was the one who’d just had his entire body rearrange on him in the span of an hour. “You’re hurt,” Keith managed to whisper, pointing towards the reflection of Lance’s back in the bathroom mirror.

Lance twisted his head to see his reflection over his shoulder, but it was an awkward angle and he could barely make out the thin trails of blood that criss-crossed his back. Still, they looked superficial at best to him, and he doubted he’d catch any Galra cooties from Keith. Both Allura and Coran had told him over and over that being a Galra wasn’t contagious. So he just turned back to Keith and shrugged, unconcerned. “Nah, it’s not that bad. I’ve gotten worse from my cat.”

Keith didn’t look convinced, though, so Lance stalked back towards him, grumbling under his breath. “I swear, I’m _fine_ , now hurry up and take your shower, jerk. I need one next, and the longer you take the longer I have to stew in your juices. So be quick.” He forcefully turned Keith back towards the shower stall, giving him a little push in that direction, before turning to head back towards the bedroom again. Then, as he exited, he called over his shoulder, “And don’t use up all the hot water!”

He thought he heard Keith blow a raspberry at him, but he’d probably just imagined it.

 

==

 

When Keith had come out of the shower wearing a borrowed pair of Lance’s pants that actually fit him quite well now, he’d actually started to head towards the door back to his own room. But Lance had just wordlessly cut him off, guiding him towards the bed instead with a gentle hand on the small of his back. Keith hadn’t fought it, just changing direction mid-step and stumbled towards the bed. He collapsed face-first on the mattress with a grunt, only shifting enough to let Lance get the covers out from under his heavy body. Lance tucked him in, and he seemed to fall asleep right away.

Lance stayed by the bedside long enough to make sure Keith was actually settled and wouldn’t be running off, taking the opportunity to buzz Coran again. Coran, bless him, seemed to sense the need for quiet, because he answered with none of his usual boisterousness, and he kept his voice down as Lance quickly filled him in on the basics. Coran took everything in stride, just like he usually did, merely reporting that he hadn’t yet managed to get a hold of Kolivan or any of the other Blades, but that he’d keep trying. Lance signed off with a thanks, and then stumbled off to have his own quick shower.

By the time he came out, his hair still damp but dressed in a fresh set of sleep clothes, Lance was ready to sleep like the dead. He flopped down on the bed next to Keith without hesitation, too tired to be concerned about sharing a bed with his self-proclaimed rival. Besides, he had a feeling Keith shouldn’t be alone right now.

To his surprise though, when he glanced over at Keith’s face, a pair of hooded yellow eyes stared back at him. “I thought you were asleep,” Lance mumbled, too tired to react to being watched.

“I was waiting for you,” Keith responded, his voice no more than a whisper. Lance had been mildly relieved to hear that while it was certainly a bit raspier than before, Keith’s voice sounded largely unchanged. “I wanted to say thank you.”

Lance hadn’t needed to be thanked. He’d have done the same thing for any of his teammates. That’s just what you _did_ for the people that you cared about. But it still made him feel warm inside to know that his efforts had been appreciated. “Any time. I’m here for you, man,” Lance whispered back, equally quiet.

Keith gave him a small tentative smile, his face going slightly darker in what might have been a blush and his eyes crinkling in the corners, and then hid his face shyly in the pillow.

And suddenly Lance felt a very different kind of warmth spreading through him. Different, but painfully familiar from the various crushes he’d had throughout the years. _Oh crap_ , his mind helpfully supplied.


	2. make-believe 'til it all comes true

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A longer chapter here, because I wanted to get the plot started. Who's ready for MORE suffering? :D

Lance preceded him into the dining hall the next morning, loudly announcing, “Okay so some weird shit happened last night and Keith looks a bit different now, but he’s still our stupid mullet head so no one freak out, okay?”

And with a herald like that, Keith had no choice but to walk into the room. He tried not to look at anyone, but when he heard the series of gasps, some louder than others, he couldn’t help but glance around the room. Pidge and Hunk looked the most surprised at the sight of him, Pidge slightly more so. Hunk looked a little validated, even, and Keith briefly recalled Hunk trying to see if his skin had gone purple on their mission to the Weblum. Hunk was probably going to feel pretty smug that he’d somehow seen this coming once he got over the surprise. Coran, for his part, looked completely unphased, but Keith expected that. He remembered overhearing Lance talking to the Altean over the comms last night, so Coran had known about this sooner than anyone.

Keith couldn’t bear to look at Allura. She’d had a hard enough time dealing with his Galra heritage when he’d still looked human. He didn’t want to know what she thought of him now.

The biggest surprise, though, was the last person seated at the table. Kolivan stood up as Keith entered, his face still smooth and unreadable, and walked towards them. Lance briefly looked between the oncoming Galra and Keith, as if trying to decide if he needed to step in, but Keith gave just the tiniest shake of his head to tell Lance he was alright. Lance seemed to pick up on it, because he shrugged and then eagerly rushed off to the kitchen to get his own portion of breakfast.

“Paladin Keith. I am glad to see that you have endured your transformation. I am so sorry that I did not think to warn you,” Kolivan greeted him as he came to a stop at the head of the table. Keith himself stopped a few feet away, still slightly wary of the larger man after his experiences with the Blade of Marmora trials.

“Warn me?” Keith repeated, raising an eyebrow. “You mean you knew this could happen?”

Kolivan’s expression never changed, and he did not move, but Keith got the faintest sense that he was uncomfortable. “Yes, and no,” he admitted plainly. “While Galra hybrids are not uncommon across the empire, ” He paused as everyone in the room collectively winced as they realized what he was implying about what the Galra might do to their prisoners, “Usually Galra hybrids are either born with their Galra traits already in place, or undergo the Changing early on in their lives.”

Keith raised his eyebrow at the unfamiliar term. “The Changing?” Pidge piped up, asking the question instead of Keith, a spoonful of food goo forgotten halfway up to their mouth.

Kolivan briefly looked over, before turning his focus back to Keith. “Yes. The Changing. It’s what we call the event where a hybrid’s Galra genetics activate and they undergo the physical changes that result in their Galran appearance. Typically it occurs early on in life, while their bodies are still developing. I had never heard of it happening so late, and you seemed to take so strongly after your human side that I assumed you would not experience it. Still, I should have at least thought to mention it to you. Forgive me.”

Kolivan was impossible to read, his face as flat and emotionless as ever, but Keith was pretty sure that Kolivan actually _did_ felt bad about this. At least a little. Besides, there was nothing that could be done about it now. Still, he wasn’t exactly thrilled that he had walked into this “Changing” completely blind when Kolivan could have given him the heads up long ago. So he simply nodded cooly at Kolivan in acceptance, not completely forgiving the older man, but not willing to raise a stink about it. What was done was done.

Kolivan seemed to pick up on this, because he took a respectful step back. “I must confess, it is quite interesting to see a Galra Human hybrid,” he added, his voice actually gaining a bit of emotion that Keith would have called excitement on anyone else. “Normally hybrids take much more after the Galra parent than the other species, but you actually seem to be at least half and half of both traits, if not more human. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

That caught Keith off guard, as he felt like he looked pretty damn Galra right now. But then he actually thought about it, comparing what he’d seen in the mirror this morning to the other Galra he’d encountered in the past. And he had to admit that Kolivan might have had a point. While his skin was purple now, and he had long fur-covered ears, claws, and fangs, he’d managed to keep his human eyes despite the colour change. And his body proportions and size were still very human. Even his facial structure hadn’t changed at all, even though most Galra he’d seen had pronounced jawlines. When he thought about it, he pretty much still looked human with a few extra features.

“I guess you’re right,” he was forced to agree.

“Humans must have very strong genetics,” Kolivan murmured, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. But then he seemed to shake himself out of it, and gestured towards the table. “Come, you need to eat. Your body will need nutrients after going through so many changes. Thankfully Coran was able to warn me in time so that I could bring some supplies with me.”

The supplies in question turned out to be hard pellets that smelled like rosemary, looked like dried prunes, and tasted like sausage. It was a weird combination, but after eating pretty much nothing but Altean food goo for months, to Keith they tasted heavenly. He gobbled up a whole bowlful of them before he’d even known what was happening.

When he looked up at Kolivan from his empty bowl with sad hopeful eyes, Kolivan had actually _smiled_ at him – albeit it looked more like a grimace than anything – and handed him a few more of the pellets. “There’s plenty more where that came from, and I can get more if need be.”

Keith would forgive Kolivan for these food pellets alone.

It wasn’t until after breakfast, where Keith had put away another two full servings of the pellets and a plate of food goo on top of that, that Keith realized that there had been something off about the whole morning. And it wasn’t until he’d gotten back to his room to change that he figured out what it was.

After their big entrance into the dining hall, Lance hadn’t said another word for the rest of the meal. Keith hadn’t even remembered seeing him come back from the kitchen.

Keith briefly thought that maybe he’d done something wrong, or that despite Lance’s bravado and the way he’d seemed so calm last night, that Lance was actually really freaked out by Keith’s transformation and now he couldn’t stand to be near him. But almost as soon as the thought formed in his mind, he dismissed it. If Lance had a problem with him now, he’d definitely say something about it, and _loudly_. He’d always done it before.

…right?

He was spared from thinking on it any further by a chime at his door. Confused, he went to answer it, wondering who the heck would be calling on him right after breakfast.

He was absolutely gobsmacked when he opened the door to find Allura standing on the other side. He felt his new ears go flat against his head. He didn’t like that hard look on her face. It was just as he’d thought, she hated him all over again.

“A-Allura?” he stuttered out, trying to at least keep things civil. “What are you doing here?”

To his further shock, she gave him a tight-lipped smile and held out her staff. It was only then that he noticed she was in her training suit, her long hair tied back in its no-nonsense bun.

“Training,” she announced, resting the staff on her shoulder. “Kolivan and I spoke, and we agreed that you’ll need to get used to your new form as fast as possible. You’ll be stronger now, and your muscles will move in different ways than you expect. You’ll need practice.”

“And…you’re going to train with me?” Keith guessed, feeling like she’d already hit him upside the head with her staff.

Allura just nodded. “Kolivan will help as well, but he’s headed back to the other Blades for now to update them on the situation. So let’s get started. If I have my way, you’ll be perfectly in control of your new body before he even gets back.”

He stared at her, absolutely stunned. On the one hand, Keith felt his heart swell as he realized that Allura had already accepted his new form without question. He thought that the visual reminder of his heritage would make her hate him all over again, but it seemed like she was staying true to her word, and she was looking past his Galra side to see _him_. This hadn’t changed anything between them again.

On the other hand, Allura was about to kick his ass so hard that Zarkon would feel it _,_ and he was terrified.

“I’ll…go get changed,” he said weakly, already accepting his oncoming death.

“Great,” Allura chirped, and her smile became much more cheerful, but with the teeniest hint of _murder_ in that grin. Maybe it was all the teeth.

Keith swallowed thickly.

 

==

 

“Oh I am fuuuucked,” Lance whispered to himself. He’d been wandering through the Castle of Lions ever since breakfast this morning, trying to sort through his memories of the previous night and wasting time while the Castle’s cleaning systems dealt with the remaining mess from Keith’s transformation that had still been on the bedroom floor when they’d woken up. Lance had spotted the pearly white teeth abandoned on the rug and heaved a little, though thankfully Keith had still been asleep on the bed beside him at that point and hadn’t noticed.

And hadn’t _that_ been an experience. Waking up to Keith, _Galra_ Keith even, tucked up next to him and breathing softly, his hair and fur all rucked up after a night of sleeping, had unfortunately confirmed the realization from the night before. The twist in Lance’s chest as he stared down at Keith’s sleeping face, his fingers itching to reach out and touch, could only mean one thing.

“So fucked,” Lance repeated. He’d tried to play it cool that morning at breakfast, but when Keith had stared down Kolivan without even flinching, making even the larger man back down a step, Lance had nearly swooned a little. He’d needed to finish his meal in the kitchen, afraid he’d do something crazy like try to offer his food to Keith or play footsie under the table. No, better to remove himself from the temptation before he did anything stupid.

But now his aimless wandering through the ship had led him to the observation deck overlooking the training room, and the second he’d spotted the flash of purple skin and dark hair he’d been helpless to direct his steps away. He was practically pressed nose-first against the glass, watching with wide-eyed wonder as Keith and Allura clashed below him, trading blows that even from here he could tell would have been lethal if Keith were still human. Allura’s muscles rippled with each of her strikes, her Altean strength in play, but Keith was deflecting each of her blows and getting in a few of his own…barely. A part of Lance gleefully noticed that even though Keith was stronger now, inhumanly strong, he was pretty sure Allura could wipe the floor with him if she really wanted. The more he watched, the more he was sure Allura was actually holding back a bit.

All too soon his theory was proved correct when Allura managed to knock Keith’s sword aside and strike him in the gut with a quick jab of her staff. Keith went flying, and Lance winced as Keith crashed painfully to the ground. He couldn’t hear anything that was happening in the other room, but he was pretty sure Keith let out a groan of pain.

Allura huffed, clearly unsatisfied, but she walked over to give Keith a hand up anyways. They exchanged a few silent words, and Lance saw Allura give Keith a pleased smile and a friendly pat on the back. Now that she wasn’t moving so quickly, Lance could see her hair was starting to come out of its bun and she was sweating lightly. He wondered how long they’d been at it.

But then he caught sight of Keith, panting but looking oh so pleased with himself, and he felt his breath catch in his throat. Keith’s hair was a mess, he was soaked with sweat, and even from here Lance could see the bruises starting to darken on his skin, but when he grinned at Allura like that, he was just absolutely gorgeous, sharp teeth and all. Lance let out a soft moan and thunked his forehead against the observation window’s glass. He was _so_ screwed.

Unfortunately the knock against the glass seemed to be audible in the training room below, because both Allura and Keith looked up at him. He jolted upright out of his slump, hoping they hadn’t noticed his pathetic pining over Keith, and gave them a nervous wave. Thankfully neither of them seemed to find anything amiss, because they both smiled and waved back. Then Keith gave him a meaningful look that somehow Lance immediately knew meant “can we talk later?” He gave Keith a nervous, hesitant nod, wondering when he’d become so fluent in Keith’s body language that he’d be able to read him that well from across a room, and tried not to blush like a teenager when Keith smiled up at him. Deciding he’d suffered enough, he waved goodbye and then quickly scuttled out of the observation room.

“So very fucked,” Lance repeated to himself as he walked away.

 

==

 

Keith hit the floor of the training room for the umpteenth time with a pained yelp, rolling across it until he came to a stop against the far wall. He lay there for a moment, letting out a groan as he waited for the world to stop spinning.

“I think that’s enough,” Allura’s voice broke through the room, and Keith twisted his head until he could see her. From the way he’d landed, he ended up looking at her upside-down.

“What, already?” he joked, his words coming out as a breathless wheeze. “I’m just…getting started.”

He was rewarded with a snort and a smirk from the Altean princess. Honestly though, he was more than ready to take a break. They’d been at this for what felt like hours now, Allura running him through various drills and sparring sessions that tested out his new senses and strengths. He was finding his hearing to be the hardest thing to adjust to – while he was pretty sure it had improved just by virtue of his ears being so much bigger now, he also thought the range of sounds he could hear might have changed as well – but he was feeling much more comfortable in his new body now, even if he was exhausted. He wasn’t sure how Allura had known exactly what to do to help him get used to a changed form, but he suspected it had something to do with the fact that Alteans were shapeshifters.

He slowly rolled over until he was at least facing the right direction again. By that time Allura had made her way over, and she offered him a hand up. He took it gratefully, leaning on her as he got his shaky legs beneath himself. He felt like he’d been run through a washing machine, his whole body made out of wet noodles. His only consolation was that Allura herself was still breathing a bit hard.

“You’re doing remarkably well,” Allura praised him as he finally managed to stand on his own. “I honestly was expecting you to take longer to adjust to your new body.”

Keith rubbed at the back of one fuzzy ear thoughtfully. “I guess…maybe it’s because not much actually changed?” he suggested hesitantly. “I mean, yeah, my vision’s a bit different. Things are brighter than before and the colours look a bit different. And I keep accidentally cutting myself with my…claws and teeth.” He ruefully held out his hands, displaying said claws. “And I’m still trying to get used to these _ears_.” He tugged on the ears in question. “But like, aside from being a bit taller, and being a bit stronger, I don’t think my body is actually _that_ different now. I still feel like…like me.”

He sort of trailed off, his ears drooping a little. He hadn’t actually thought about it until now, but as he said those words to Allura he realized they were true. He honestly didn’t feel _that_ different. It was like he had somehow always known that this would happen. That his body had been preparing for these changes all his life and now that it was actually here it felt… _right_. Keith had always been a little bit awkward, a tiny bit unsure in his own skin, but now that he’d changed it was like he was finally who he was supposed to be.

He wasn’t exactly _thrilled_ with the fact that his apparent natural state of being was half Galra, but it was nice to be truly comfortable in his own body for the first time ever.

Allura’s expression softened into a smile. “You are still you,” she said, resting a hand on his shoulder. “As far as any of us are concerned, nothing has changed. You are still a Paladin of Voltron.”

Keith smiled back, reaching up to give the hand on his shoulder a little squeeze. He wasn’t exactly a hugger, but this kind of contact he could handle. “Thanks, Allura.”

She smiled at him for a moment more, and then pulled back, her expression shifting to something more anxious. “I must be honest, though, I have not been pushing you so hard to get used to your new form this morning just to try to show up Kolivan.”

Keith perked up, nervous at her change in tone but curious all the same. “Oh?” he prompted.

“Kolivan and I were speaking over breakfast before you arrived,” she began to explain. “The Blade of Marmora has recently identified a new target for us. A communications hub that is vital to the continuing functioning of the Empire…and a possible source of information on Shiro’s whereabouts.”

_That_ got Keith’s attention. “What? Really?”

Allura turned away, wrapping her arms around herself nervously. “Kolivan believes that if Shiro were found by the Galra, the announcement would have to go through this facility to reach Galra High Command. Even if he’s been spotted, rather than captured.”

“Then…then we have to go there,” Keith said slowly. “If there’s a chance that there’s _any_ information.”

“Exactly,” Allura agreed, finally looking back at him. “Kolivan and I agreed this morning; Team Voltron will infiltrate the facility, try to find any information on Shiro that we can, and then destroy it. Doing so should severely cripple the Galra Empire’s communications network.”

Keith didn’t like the way she still looked nervous. “Okay, so what’s the bad news?” he asked, knowing that there had to be something more to it than she had said. Something that he wasn’t going to like.

Allura flinched, and he knew he was right. “Well…originally the plan was to have you, Lance, and Hunk provide a distraction, allowing me to sneak Pidge aboard disguised as a Galra soldier.”

“Just like you did with Shiro that other time,” Keith said, remembering that particular mission. He also remembered that it hadn’t ended well. “But?”

“After Kolivan and I saw you and your new appearance, we changed up the plan a little. We decided it would be easier if we actually destroyed the facility from the inside…and now we had the means to put _two_ teams inside the facility.”

Keith glanced down at himself and raised an eyebrow at her. “I might be purple now, but I’m pretty sure I’m still too short to pass as a Galra soldier.”

She wilted, and he sensed that this was the crux of the matter. “No. You certainly can’t. But you _can_ pass for a Galra sevam.”

“A what?” Keith blinked at her. “What’s that?”

“As Kolivan said, Galra hybrids are not uncommon in the universe, though they are not seen as true Galra and therefore are considered to be inferior to pure-bred Galra.” Allura’s nose wrinkled, showing what she thought about that kind of mindset, before continuing.  “But, sometimes when a Galra hybrid is born of a particularly high-ranking Galra, they are given a position of status. They become assistants or errand boys for the Galra in question, called sevams. Little more than slaves, but they do enjoy several perks that actual slaves do not, such as better living quarters and food. Some are very well cared for, practically raised as the legitimate children of their Galra parent. Some…are less fortunate.”

“You want to disguise me as one of these?” Keith summed up, catching wind of the plan. “That shouldn’t be too hard, it’s just a disguise. And then, what? Help you sneak Pidge in? I’m not sure what the problem is here.”

“No, I would be teamed up with Pidge. _You_ would be escorting another Paladin, so that the two of you can plant charges that will detonate and destroy the hub once we leave, with the remaining Paladin providing potential distraction and a means of escape. The problem is…the disguise you will have to wear and the persona you must portray will not be pleasant. Galra sevams must be subservient and demure. They are often treated poorly by other Galra. You will likely endure much abuse as you travel through the base.”

But Keith wasn’t intimidated. “I don’t care,” he told her firmly. “If it helps us find Shiro and messes with the Galra, I can take it.”

Allura sighed in defeat, but she didn’t seem the least bit surprised. “Very well. Then let us gather the rest of the team and fill them in. Coran has already set us on course for the communication hub; we should be there by the ship’s next day cycle. Kolivan will meet us there with our disguises and the Blade who will be acting as your Galra parent. We’ll finalize the details then.”

Keith, who had been starting to follow Allura out of the training room and towards the attached showers, drew up short. “My…Galra parent?” he repeated.

“Yes,” Allura said, looking back at him over her shoulder. “Galra sevam are rarely unaccompanied by their masters. You’ll need someone who can pass for your parent so that the rest of the Galra aren’t stopping you every ten ticks to ask who you belong to.”

“Oh.” Keith’s voice was small, his ears low. A strange outfit, words of abuse, acting like a submissive slave, that he could handle. But he was very nervous about the idea of having someone pretend to be his mom or dad. Suddenly he was a lot less certain about this mission.

But then he thought of Shiro, who had been so tired, so worn down the last time they’d seen each other, and his resolve hardened. He could do this. For Shiro.

With that thought powering him, he headed into the showers to get cleaned off.

 

==

 

“Hunk! Hunk! Help!”

Lance skidded into the rec room, bounced off of the wall, and fell to his knees in front of his friend. Hunk, to his credit, didn’t even look up from what he was doing, which appeared to be playing some sort of Altean solo game that looked like a cross between Jenga and a Rubix cube. He carefully pushed a yellow block into the main body of the game, and then frowned when three more blocks suddenly poked out elsewhere.

“What did you do now, Lance?” he asked, still focused on the game.

They had been friends long enough that Lance didn’t bother getting offended that Hunk wasn’t paying full attention to him. This was just how they worked; Lance would come in, ranting about some new problem, and Hunk would listen and offer soothing words while still working on whatever he’d been doing before. It was so familiar that they both could pretty much do this in their sleep.

“It’s not me, it’s…well okay maybe it’s kind of me. I mean, it is me, but it’s not my fault you know? It’s his fault. I’m pretty sure it’s his fault anyways.”

Hunk actually looked up from the stack of blocks to raise his eyebrow at Lance. “I’m sorry, what happened? Dude. Use your words.”

Lance sighed heavily, burying his face in his hands. He took a moment to collect himself, trying to think of what he wanted to say. And then, speaking in a very serious voice, he announced, “I am fucked.”

Apparently that was enough to really catch Hunk’s attention, because he paused mid-motion to pushing in another block, and turned to face Lance completely. “Lance. What the heck is going on?” he asked, sounding just as serious.

“I maybe…sort of…possibly…mrgghhh,” Lance tried, he really did, to admit it out loud. He could feel the words _‘I think I like Keith’_ on the back of his tongue. But no matter how hard he tried to say it, he just couldn’t force it out. He just couldn’t say it out loud, even to his best friend. His face felt like it was on fire just at the thought of it.

“Sorry buddy, didn’t catch that last part,” Hunk said, showing incredible patience. “You sort of what?”

Lance swallowed thickly and tried a new tactic. He turned so that his back was resting against Hunk’s shins, his own legs crossed, so that he wouldn’t have to look Hunk in the eye as he talked. “You ever meet someone and you think you’ve got them all figured out, you know exactly where you stand with them and nothing is ever going to change that? And then one day something happens and you can’t help but look at them differently and now you have no idea what’s going on anymore or how to feel or how to react?”

There was a long pause as Hunk thought it over. And then, Lance got a sinking feeling in his stomach, because the pause was going on just a little _too_ long. He could practically feel the grin spreading across Hunk’s lips.

“You like Keith,” Hunk announced smugly.

“W-whaaa?” Lance spluttered, jerking away from Hunk’s legs by instinct, facing him with one hand raised defensively. “No I…where would you even get such a stupid…there’s no way…maybe _you_ like Keith!”

Not his greatest moment, but he’d been caught off guard.

“Keith is very handsome,” Hunk agreed without a hint of hesitation, his expression almost wistful as he looked towards the far wall. “The Galra thing kind of takes some getting used to, but he’s still a good-looking guy, I can admit that. And I do like him. He’s a good friend. But,” He then looked back at Lance with an absolutely evil grin, “ _you’re_ the one who _like_ -likes him.”

“I do not!” Lance immediately denied, even though he most certainly did.

“Yeah, you do,” Hunk responded, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. “You’ve liked him since we were in the Garrison. You just never actually realized it. But I know you man, I know what you’re like when you actually genuinely like someone. Pidge and I have had a betting pool going for ages now on when you’d actually figure it out for yourself.”

Lance stared at him, gobsmacked. “Are you serious?”

“Yup. Pidge’s technology, statistics, and projection analysis versus my years of being your friend.”

“Who won?” Lance couldn’t help but ask.

Hunk laughed, the force of it shaking his whole body. “Neither of us. Both of us thought you’d have figured it out ages ago. I guess we both forgot how stubborn you could be. I think I was closer though.”

Lance groaned in defeat, hanging his head and sinking his fingers into his hair. “God, Hunk, I am so screwed.”

“What happened?” Hunk asked, sounding genuinely curious. “What finally made you realize?”

“He just…you know I was there when he changed, right?” Lance briefly looked up to meet Hunk’s eye, checking to make sure he was following.

“I didn’t know, but I figured.”

“It was scary,” Lance admitted quietly. His mind briefly conjured up the memories of Keith in his arms, screaming and in pain. “Really scary. He was just hurting _so much_ , and he was suffering, and there was nothing I could do but watch. I felt so helpless, it was _awful_.”

Hunk didn’t speak, letting Lance get everything off of his chest, but his brow furrowed in concern, and he reached out with one foot to nudge Lance’s own to remind him he was still there.

“I thought it would never end, but eventually it did and I just…I had been so worried, and so scared for him. But then, even though he’d just been through this awful thing, he still smiled at me? And thanked me? Like I’d actually done something?” Lance shook his head in disbelief. “He…he looked so beautiful. Even with the whole purple skin thing. And I guess I just couldn’t deny it anymore.”

Then he buried his head in his hands again and swore. “I’m so fucked.”

Hunk hummed thoughtfully, before slowly lowering himself to the floor so that he could face Lance on the same level. “Well, I don’t know about that,” he eventually said, patting Lance on the knee.

“I’m crushing on _Keith_ ,” Lance grunted, his voice a little muffled by the hands over his face. “ _Keith_. The guy who hates my guts and argues with me on a daily basis. The guy who just went through a life-changing… _change_. The guy who has _way_ more on his plate right now than he can handle, and he doesn’t need me getting my mushy feelings all over the place and making his life _more_ complicated. Not to mention he hates me. I don’t know if I said that. I’m pretty sure that’s important.”

“Well _I’m_ pretty sure that’s not true,” Hunk shot back pointedly. When Lance just glared at him through his fingers, Hunk shrugged and elaborated. “Keith doesn’t hate you. Keith has never hated you and you know it. You guys work well together, and you hang out all the time. You just tend to fight a lot. You _know_ he doesn’t get social cues as well as the rest of us, so he probably doesn’t come across the way you expect him to, that’s all.”

“Lies. You are spouting lies.”

“Believe what you want, I know _I_ can’t convince you or I’d have tried ages ago. But Lance.” He waited until he was sure Lance was looking up at him, listening. “He didn’t come to any of us when he started changing into a Galra. He went to _you_. And I’m pretty sure that means something.”

And after giving Lance a meaningful look, Hunk got back up off of the floor and returned to his puzzle game, conversation finished.

That was okay by Lance, though, because as much as he hated to admit it, Hunk had given him a lot to think about.

Unfortunately that was the point that Coran’s voice came on over the Castle of Lion’s intercom system, calling them all to the bridge to discuss their latest mission, and the time for thinking abruptly goes out the window.

 

==

 

“The base is moderately well protected,” Allura described their mission, pointing to the hovering display of the communication hub’s layout that the ship was projecting. “We will need to move the Castle of Lions into position behind this asteroid in order to maintain our own communications while aboard. Once we are in position, we will use the stolen shuttle the Blade of Marmora have provided to arrive at the docking facility.”

A glowing white dot appeared on the diagram behind the asteroid that Allura had pointed out, and slowly moved towards one of the lower entrances of the facility. When it arrived, the map zoomed in, showing the area in more detail. The white dot shifted into a group of five icons; the heads of the Red, Blue, and Green Lions, Allura’s helmet, and a Blade of Marmora mask.

“From here, the two teams will split up. I will escort Pidge to the mainframe storage facility in this section of the hub,” Allura gestured as she spoke, and the Allura helmet and Green Lion icons moved through the map of the ship to a small room near the outer hull. “Here, Pidge will hack into the system and gather as much intel as they can, while I provide guard.”

“I’ve rigged an external harddrive out of an old Altean e-reader,” Pidge added, holding up a rectangular box made of white metal and covered in glowing blue lines, and smirked, “so I should be able to steal a _lot_ of data.”

“Meanwhile, the second team will be travelling through the hub, and planting charges at key locations,” Allura continued. She held up a round disk, black and featureless aside from a flat purple circle in the center that pulsed with light, while the map started glowing with purple dots that pulsed in the same rhythm. “Inok will be escorting Keith, disguised as his sevam, and Lance who will be their slave. If you are stopped, your story is that your slaves are doing routine maintenance on the hub, and that these charges are part of the security system upgrade.”

Everyone turned to look at the three in question. The Blade that had been assigned to their team hadn’t taken off his mask yet, but he nodded to Allura in acknowledgement. Keith, standing next to Inok and hoping he didn’t look as nervous as he felt, nodded as well.

Lance, however, was frowning. “Remind me again why I’m going in to place the charges instead of Hunk, who helped build the things and therefore actually knows how to use them?”

Rather than Allura answering, Kolivan stepped up from where he’d been lurking behind her, half in shadow. “Hunk is acting as support for two reasons. One, if something goes wrong and we need a distraction, the Yellow Lion will be able to take the abuse of the hub’s defenses for longer. Two, we have a large team that will need to be extracted. The Yellow Lion can fit more people in her cockpit.”

“All five of us fit in Blue, once,” Lance argued half-heartedly.

“Yeah, and it was pretty tight,” Pidge quickly pointed out. “Keith’s bigger now, Allura’ll probably still be Galra-big, and Inok is huge. There’s no way you’d be able to move freely enough to pilot if we were all in there with you.”

“Fair enough,” Lance sniffed, satisfied.

“So, once the data has been extracted,” Allura took back over, getting them back on track, “and the charges have been laid, we will all reconvene at the shuttle.”

“And if something goes wrong?” Keith couldn’t help but point out. This plan seemed way too simple; he remembered what happened last time they’d tried something like this. “What happens if one of the teams can’t make it back? What happens if the shuttle gets destroyed? What happens if we get separated?”

“Find an escape pod, and launch it,” Kolivan said simply. “That’s also why Hunk is on standby. Coran will be monitoring for any signs of trouble, and he’ll send Hunk in when needed.”

Hunk stepped up and rested a hand on Keith’s shoulder, offering some comfort. “Don’t worry. I’ll protect you guys,” he said, his words heavy.

Keith gave him a half-smile, leaning into the contact. “I’m not worried about you, Hunk,” he said honestly. “I know you’ll keep us safe.” Then his expression fell and he turned back to the rest of the room. “I just…can’t help but worry. It seems too simple.”

“Unfortunately it’s the best we can do,” Allura admitted with a sigh. “We don’t have an agent on the inside anymore, so we’re going to have to work with whatever information we can get our hands on. That’s why this mission is so important. Why it is necessary. We need information.”

She didn’t mention Shiro’s name, but they all heard it anyways. It seemed to solidify their resolve.

“Well then,” Keith said, briefly glancing around the room. “What are we waiting for?”

The team dispersed after that to get ready. Coran and Kolivan stayed behind, speaking in low voices as Coran piloted them towards their destination. Allura and Pidge wandered off, Allura’s skin already starting to look purple, while Hunk muttered something about getting a pre-mission snack so he wouldn’t get hungry later. That left Lance, Keith, and Inok, stepping out into the hallway just outside the bridge, and staring at each other for a moment.

“It is an honour to meet you, Paladins,” Inok finally took it upon himself to break the silence. There was a shimmer, and then his mask vanished, finally revealing his face to the two of them. “I am looking forward to working with you.”

Keith could see why this particular Blade had been assigned to their team almost immediately. His fur was mostly pale purple, typical for Galra, but a thick dark tuft of fur rose from the crown of his head and ran down to his shoulders, looking like a particularly fluffy Mohawk. His ears were also large, triangular, and covered in thick fur that extended down his jawline in thick tufts that almost looked like mutton chops. He was broad in the shoulders, and still towered over Keith and Lance, but he was shorter than most Galra they’d seen. Overall he had a striking resemblance to Keith’s new form, which was the whole point. He’d easily pass for Keith’s parent.

Keith couldn’t help but be secretly, pathetically relieved that his chosen ‘parent’ was male. Because he knew his father, he knew his dad had been human. If they’d assigned a ‘mother’ to him, he wouldn’t be able to help thinking that maybe…

But thankfully Inok was the one they’d be teamed up with, and Keith could live with that.

“We’re looking forward to working with you as well,” Keith responded, nodding his head respectfully. He felt more than saw Lance nod as well.

“We haven’t much time to prepare,” Inok quickly continued, straight and to the point. “We should get dressed.”

He led them to a side room, stepping in and flicking on the lights. There were three piles of clothes waiting for them, and Keith raised an eyebrow at the sight of them.

Inok’s disguise was easy to identify. Keith wasn’t sure where the Blade had managed to acquire a Galra General’s armour – aside from the obvious method that didn’t bare thinking about right now – but the familiar black metal and orange accents were very recognizable. Lance’s costume was a bit harder to place, but Keith remembered the jumpsuit that Shiro had been wearing when he’d first returned to Earth. This jumpsuit looked a little bit different; the suit itself was dirty brown while the think over shirt was a pale sandy colour. Keith wondered if the different colours meant something, or if slave outfits were just made out of whatever materials were on hand.

But then he saw his own disguise, and he blanched, his ears going back. Suddenly he understood why Allura thought he might be uncomfortable.

“Are you serious?” he blurted out, holding up the heavy metal ring that he was really hoping was supposed to go on his head like a crown. “ _This_ is what Galra dress their _kids_ in?”

“Sevam are rarely considered to actually be children of the Galra,” Inok’s voice was low, flat. “They are often little more than slaves themselves.”

“But Lance at least gets to wear clothes that cover his entire body,” Keith snarled, whirling around with a flimsy piece of fabric in his hands. “How am I even supposed to wear this?!”

He thought he heard Lance choke and splutter out some kind of curse, but he was too focused on the “outfit” in his hands to pay attention to Lance laughing at him. There was so little to the disguise that he was pretty sure professional strippers would feel uncomfortable in it. All it seemed to consist of was a pair of briefs, a metallic belt that had strips of sheer black cloth hanging down from it that might act as a sort of skirt, and lots of metal rings just slightly too pale to be gold that he suspected were meant to be worn around his wrists and ankles. He was going to look like Slave Leia.

“Just…why?” he asked flatly, staring at the belt-skirt like it was a snake about to bite him.

“Sevam are slaves and considered inferior to Galra,” Inok explained carefully as he started to put on his armour, not even looking up from his task. “But they are still children of Galra, and have Galra blood. Their uniforms are designed to impede their movements, and provide minimal protection, so that if they rebel or try to escape, they can be taken down easily.”

Well _that_ was a cheerful thought. “Oh,” Keith said simply, suddenly uncomfortable about the outfit for a whole new reason. But once again, the thought of finding Shiro went through his mind, and he took a deep breath. “For Shiro,” he muttered to himself. “We’re doing this for Shiro.”

And with that, he screwed up his courage, and started to strip. Only to stop with his shirt half-off when Lance let out an outraged squawk.

“What?” he asked, annoyed. He needed to put this damn outfit on _now_ before he lost his momentum.

“You’re just gonna… _strip? Here?_ ” Lance gestured around the small room. “In front of us?”

Keith tried to share an incredulous look with Inok, but the Galra was pointedly staying out of it, still putting on his armour piece by piece over his bodysuit. “Uh, yeah?” Keith said slowly. “Where else was I supposed to change? We need to get ready. You have to change clothes too, you know.”

That seemed to catch Lance for a moment, because he glanced towards his own slave outfit as if he’d just realized he couldn’t put it on over his Paladin armour.

Keith’s expression suddenly flattened, and he turned away, hiding his face behind his bangs. “I mean, if my new look bothers you _that_ much, I – ”

“No, no, no!” Lance quickly cut him off, shaking his head frantically. “It’s not that, I promise! I just…um…” He trailed off, which was less than convincing.

Part of Keith had wondered if Lance had been secretly freaking out about his Galra appearance and was just trying to hide it. Maybe that’s why Lance had been avoiding him all day, and avoiding his eye whenever they were together. Why else would Lance’s behaviour around him suddenly change?

But then Lance took a deep breath and faced Keith head on, staring him dead in the eye. “I promise you, Keith. I really, truly, _honestly_ do not care that you look Galra.”

Keith searched his face for a moment before the intensity of the moment got to be too much for him, and he looked away, his cheeks feeling hot for some reason.

“Okay,” he said quietly. “I believe you.”

After that, Lance seemed to get over his shyness, because he simply reached for the slave jumpsuit, turning his back on the rest of the room as he started to strip. Keith turned his attention back to getting his own disguise on, which actually required way more of his attention than he expected.

As such, even though his outfit included the least amount of actual fabric, he was still the last to be dressed. He’d managed the briefs well enough, and although he’d struggled with the latch on the belt, he figured out how to put that on by himself, but the rings of metal eluded him. He just couldn’t figure out how they were supposed to open.

When he said as much to Inok, the Galra grunted, taking one of the rings, and pointing to a small dip in the metal. “ _You_ are not meant to be able to open them,” he said simply, pressing a clawed finger against the groove. “Your owner is.”

The ring popped open with a near-silent click, splitting along an invisible seam into two halves. Inok held open these pieces patiently.

“Oh,” Keith said quietly, nervous again. He trusted Inok as a member of the Blade of Marmora, but he didn’t know how comfortable he felt about being unable to get out of what was clearly a collar and set of manacles without the Galra’s help. He hesitated, looking between Inok and the offered ring.

Thankfully Inok seemed to understand his wariness, because he gave Keith a tight smile that showed off his stubby tusks. “Do not fear. They have also been coded to Allura’s and Coran’s fingerprints, and we will also code them to your friend as well.” He nodded to Lance, who had been distractedly pulling at his overshirt, but perked up when he realized he was being addressed. “You will not be trapped in these forever.”

Keith openly sighed in relief. “Okay,” he agreed simply, taking a seat on the bench against the far wall of the room and holding out his hand to Inok. The large Galra slipped the two halves of the ring around Keith’s wrist, and then gently clicked them into place. The ring closed, the seam vanished, leaving Keith with a bangle sitting snuggly in place around his wrist. He turned his hand this way and that, testing for rubbing or any issues with motion, but the metal was smooth against his skin. If he hadn’t known it was meant to restrain, he might not have even minded it so much.

But then Inok clicked the other bangles in place around Keith’s other wrist and ankles, and suddenly he felt the discomfort. They were heavy and bulky, and he could tell they would slow him down if he tried to run. He tried to keep the grimace off of his face, but based on the way Lance was looking at him with open concern he had a feeling he was failing.

And then Inok held up the last piece, the ring that Keith _knew_ was meant to go around his neck, and he physically balked.

“No.” It came out before he had a chance to bite it back. Instinct took over, despite his best intentions. “No.”

“You must,” Inok said simply, though he made no motion to step closer.

“I can’t,” Keith whispered, staring at the ring with wide eyes. “I _can’t_.”

“Yes you can.” Lance’s quiet voice drew his attention, and he gladly looked away from the collar to Lance. Lance was watching him sadly, his hands hanging limply at his sides. Seeing him wearing a slave’s outfit, so similar to what Shiro had been wearing when he’d crashed back into their lives, scared and beaten and tortured, made Keith’s insides twist just as much as the collar did. Even though Lance’s disguise was slightly less uncomfortable than Keith’s, Keith would at least be sort of treated as a person. Lance was about to go into a situation where he’d be seen as less than an animal. This was going to suck for both of them.

“You can do this, Keith,” Lance repeated, gentle but firm, giving Keith his full support. “It sucks, but you can do it. For Shiro, and the universe.”

_No_ , Keith’s mind suddenly whispered out of nowhere. _For_ you _I can do it._

He blinked in surprise. Where the heck had _that_ come from? But he didn’t have time to dwell on the weird thoughts, simply shaking his head out and turning back towards Inok and the collar with a huff. “Fine,” he said, letting his eyes slip closed. “Just do it.”

“Hmmm, actually…” Inok muttered to himself, but Keith didn’t bother to open his eyes. He’d prefer not to see the collar coming. Still, it seemed to take forever for that near-silent click to sound, and then Keith felt a body approach him. But when smooth skin brushed against his neck rather than soft fur, Keith’s eyes flew open.

Lance was hovering over him, looking nervous and flushed, holding the two halves of the collar in his trembling hands. “Is this okay?” he murmured, licking his lips. “Inok thought you might feel better if it’s me, though I don’t think anyone can feel better about this.”

But to Keith’s surprise, it actually _did_ make him feel better. At least a little. “It’s okay. It’s fine,” he said, just as quietly. He let his eyes drift shut again, focusing on the mixture of sensations as the cool metal of the collar contrasted against Lance’s warm fingertips. When the collar snapped closed against his neck, he almost didn’t even notice, too focused on the oddly nice feeling of Lance’s skin against his own.

But then Lance stepped away, and Keith was forced to open his eyes. He looked up to see both Inok and Lance watching him warily, waiting. Taking a deep breath, Keith rose to his feet, trying to get used to the weight of the metal bands around his limbs, the feeling of the flimsy strips of fabric that made up his skirt brushed against the tops of his thighs, the way his new purple skin was almost completely exposed. He absently noted that Lance was looking a bit flushed for some reason, but brushed it off as still feeling awkward about being the one to literally collar Keith.

He took a few practice steps, and then sighed. “I guess we’re ready.”

“And not a moment too soon,” Inok added as they all heard the ship’s engines slip into a lower power as they arrived at their target. “Let’s go.”

Keith followed Inok out of the room, Lance trailing behind, already trying to take on the subservient attitude he needed to display to pass as a Galra sevam. It didn’t help, though, that he could feel Lance’s eyes boring into his naked back the whole way. His gut started to churn, but for some reason it wasn’t from nerves about the coming mission.

He tried very hard not to think about it as they strode into the Castle of Lions’ main hangar, where the rest of the team was waiting for them.

 

==

 

The first part of the mission had gone impossibly well.

They’d landed the shuttle without issue, their faked IDs easily accepted by the Galra drones awaiting them. The single living Galra on duty in the hangar didn’t even look up at them, leaving the work to the heavily armed drones. Allura had nodded at them from beneath her heavy helmet, Pidge already tucked away inside a crate that Allura loaded onto a hovercart, and then they headed off towards their own task. They watched her go, and then Inok started striding off in the opposite direction, Keith and Lance following dutifully in his wake a half step behind each other, as they’d been instructed. Keith focused very hard on keeping his eyes turned to the floor, and hanging on to the case of tools that they needed to both fix the charges in place and make it look like they were actually doing work. Behind him Lance was stuck carrying the bulky box full of charges.

They barely saw anyone as they wandered through the communication hub, stopping every time they found a strategic location to plant a charge and fixing it in place. Lance and Inok were actually responsible for the technical detailing – Hunk having given Lance a crash course on the charges back at the Castle of Lions – while Keith kept watch. The few times he actually saw someone coming other than the ever-present drones, he’d make a low tone under his breath as a warning, and Inok would immediately stand and start speaking in harsh tones, directing Lance with technical jargon that neither of the Paladins had any hope of understanding while Keith dutifully handed over tools at regular intervals. The passing Galra ignored them for the most part, giving them passing glances at best.

Only once were they actually stopped. A lanky Galra with thin arms carrying his helmet under one arm had approached them with a bored look, his eyes passing over them each before suddenly coming back to Keith with a flash of interest. The Galra walked a little bit faster towards them, and Keith felt his heartbeat quicken with fear. Had they been discovered? Why was he being singled out? Had he done something that the other Galra had noticed was strange?

But when the Galra reached them, he just gave Inok a big grin. “Vrepit sa,” the Galra greeted.

“Vrepit sa,” Inok returned gruffly, appearing to be paying close attention to Lance’s work as he fixed their latest charge to the wall next to a thick power cable running up towards the ceiling.

“Pretty sevam you got there,” the Galra continued, either oblivious to Inok’s disinterest or uncaring. “What did the mother look like? I don’t think I’ve seen anything like him.”

Keith’s heart was in his throat now, and he felt like he couldn’t breathe. He very carefully kept his head down, trying to hide behind his hair, and hoped that the Galra lost interest soon.

Thank Voltron for Inok, though. The older Galra didn’t even flinch, didn’t even look up. He showed absolutely no sign of nerves as he scoffed and gestured vaguely in Keith’s direction. “She was pretty enough, for the night,” he said dismissively. “And this one is skilled enough that he’s worth keeping around for simple tasks. Now don’t you have somewhere to be?”

That last sentence was delivered with a sharp look, and the Galra immediately went pale. His eyes darted over Inok’s armour and he seemed to realize for the first time the supposed rank of the person he was talking to. With a choked out farewell, he scampered off.

Not once had he even looked at Lance. It was like Lance was nothing more than another light fixture on the wall. It made Keith want to bite something. He settled on clenching his teeth behind his tightly sealed lips so hard he could hear them creak.

After that they moved quickly through the facility, spooked by their encounter. Inok and Lance worked twice as fast, while Keith’s ears twitched at the tiniest sound, his head constantly whipping back and forth to check for anyone coming. They covered half of the facility in the span of what Keith guessed was roughly an hour.

But just as they reached the furthest point from the docks where the shuttle waited for them, all hell broke loose.

Inok had pointed out a control panel, their next target. Lance had just crouched down, charge in hand, ready to get to work when suddenly alarms started blaring. The team looked around themselves in shock and fear, wondering what was happening and if they’d somehow tripped a signal somewhere.

But that’s when Pidge’s voice broke through the air, muffled because only Inok was wearing a helmet that could handle a communications device. “ _Quiznak!”_ they cursed. And then, “ _Guys, I’m caught. Allura and I need to get out of here. I got as much data as I could, but we need to leave. Now!”_

“Of course,” Inok muttered into the comm, his golden eyes narrowed. “I do not believe our team has been compromised, so we will try to make our way to the docks without drawing attention. However, we are on the far side of the hub, and I’m not sure we’ll make it in time.”

_“Just start moving. Worst case scenario you launch an escape pod and Hunk picks you up,”_ Pidge directed, their voice coming out a bit distorted as they started to run. _“Allura and I are on the move. Hunk, get ready!”_

_“Roger,”_ Hunk’s voice came next.

“Come, let us hurry,” Inok said to them in a low voice, pulling Lance to his feet. The three started walking as quickly as they could back the way they came without looking like they were in a hurry. Keith fought the instinct to press his hands against his ears in pain; the sirens were agonizing for his new Galra hearing.

But then there was a sudden ear-splitting slamming noise behind them. The team whirled around with wide eyes, to see a metal gate slam down across the hallway behind them. A tick later, another gate came down. With a loud crash a third gate came down right behind them.

“Quiznak,” Lance breathed.

“Run!” Inok ordered.

They didn’t need to be told twice. Keith broke into a sprint, his eyes wide and his ears back. Behind them the gates continued to come down, sealing off the corridor as they passed.

“The security system must have sensed a breech but wasn’t able to identify where,” Inok shouted, huffing already under his heavy armour. “So they’re sealing off the corridors to try to trap the intruders.”

“To trap _us_ ,” Lance pointed out, cursing and stumbling for a second but managing to regain his footing.

“They don’t know we’re intruders yet,” Inok clarified. “But it won’t take them long to realize if we’re caught. We must get to an escape pod immediately.”

After that there was no point in talking; they needed to save their breath for running. To Keith, the endless hallways they ran through were like a maze, and he had become hopelessly turned around long before this point. One glance over in Lance’s direction showed he looked equally lost. Thankfully Inok seemed to know where he was going, or at least he looked like he knew. He led them zig-zagging through the corridors, keeping them narrowly ahead of the dropping gates.

Finally, Keith saw starlight up ahead through a window, and nearly sobbed in relief as he realized what that meant; escape pods would be nearby. His new Galra strength combined with a pure shot of adrenaline had been keeping him going so far, but these sevam uniforms were well designed. His limbs felt heavy and his steps sluggish with the thick metal around his limbs, and the strips of his skirt kept getting tangled around his thighs, nearly tripping him up. It was making running so much harder than it should be.

And then the metal bangles around his ankles accidentally smacked into each other, and he stumbled.

Everything seemed to move in slow motion around him. He thought for a moment that he’d be able to get his feet back under him, tried his best to regain his balance, but his heart sank into his stomach as he felt gravity grab hold of him and drag him down. The smooth metal of the hallway floor rushed up to meet him, and he was barely able to get his hands up in time to protect his face.

He heard Lance shout. He heard Inok roar, a louder sound than he thought the Galra capable of. He raised his head, saw Lance looking at something above him with pure horror, his mouth dropping open to scream, and Keith moved on instinct. He didn’t have time to get up, only enough time to throw himself forward in an awkward roll, the hard edges of his metal cuffs digging into his skin. A split-second later a gate crashed down where he had just fallen.

“Keith!” Lance screamed, and Keith whipped his head up to look. To his horror, he saw Lance stumbling to a stop, turning back towards him. Inok had made it through to the corridor beyond, but he too was trying to turn around.

“Lance, no!” Keith cried, trying to warn him, trying to stop him. But it was too late. Lance took two steps forward, just enough to bring him back into the hallway with Keith, just two steps too far. Keith could see Inok’s look of true horror as he reached out futilely, trying to pull Lance back.

The final gate slammed shut, right behind Lance, with an almighty crash.

And the two of them were trapped.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If anyone is interested, the amazing **sexythewalkingcatfish** made art of Keith's sevam "uniform" which is absolutely beautiful. Not gonna lie, seeing this actually visualized was like 75% of my motivation to finish this fic. I am super excited that it exists, you should totally check it out [here](https://catfishdraws.tumblr.com/post/163617992018/i-finally-drew-something-that-isnt-for-a-zine-so)


	3. locked up till you're moonlit

“Let me see,” Lance murmured, reaching for Keith’s hands.

“I told you, I’m fine,” Keith grumbled, but he still let Lance take one of his hands and turn it over until it was facing palm up. The small section of hallway they’d been trapped in only had one light-bulb, which painted everything with a dim violet shade, but Lance still squinted down at Keith’s palm in the meager light, checking him for wounds.

“You look okay,” he agreed finally, still keeping his voice low. “How’s the other hand?”

“The same,” Keith said, just as quietly. Lance gestured towards it anyways and Keith reluctantly held it out for inspection as well. Not that Lance had any way to patch him up if Keith _was_ hurt. But it wasn’t like there was anything else they could do.

They had no idea how long they’d been stuck there. After the gates had closed, they’d been frozen in fear, standing back to back and waiting for some sort of laser system to burst out of the walls and try to fry them where they stood. But after a few minutes of waiting, they realized that nothing was going to happen to them, so they sunk down against the far wall side-by-side to wait for either rescue or discovery.

“I hope Inok got out okay,” Lance mentioned, even as he turned Keith’s hand this way and that, checking for injury. Inok had been a pretty cool guy; Lance would hate for anything to have happened to him.

“He should have been able to make it to an escape pod,” Keith responded, and Lance suddenly remembered that he’d seen a row of them just to the left as he’d briefly made it into the corridor with Inok before he’d turned back for Keith. “I’m sure they picked him up. Hunk would have gotten him.”

Well that was a relief. But then another thought occurred to him. “Do you think they’ll blow the charges soon?” Lance asked, looking around them absently. He didn’t see any of their charges on the walls around him, but it was pretty dark. And it was possible that one of them was planted just on the other side of one of the gates locking them in.

Keith shrugged halfheartedly. “Doubt it,” he said after a moment’s consideration. “Voltron’s already down one Paladin, I don’t think they’ll risk losing two more.”

“You think they’ll come for us?” Lance perked up hopefully.

“We went after Allura, even when that meant confronting Zarkon himself,” Keith pointed out. “They’ll come for us.”

“Yeah,” Lance agreed, settling down a bit further against Keith’s side. “You’re right.”

They sat for a few minutes in silence, waiting for something to happen. Then, suddenly, Lance noticed a strange tremor in his right side. He frowned, glancing towards his arm, and then his eyes went wide as he realized Keith was shaking a little.

“Hey, hey, hey,” Lance turned and faced Keith on his knees, resting his hands on Keith’s shoulders. “Are you okay? What’s wrong? You’re shivering. Are you cold?” He wouldn’t be surprised if Keith was. That outfit could barely be considered clothes. And leaning against the cold metal walls probably wasn’t helping. “Do you want my shirt?”

“I’m okay,” Keith said in a quiet voice, his eyes downcast. But then he looked up, and Lance felt his heart squeeze when he saw how scared Keith looked. “Just…what if we get separated?”

Lance startled, blinking at Keith in surprise. He hadn’t even thought about that. “What?”

“We _can’t_ get separated, Lance,” Keith continued, suddenly lunging forward to grab Lance by the upper arms. Lance was so startled he nearly fell over, but Keith’s grip on his arms was like iron clamps, unyielding. “If we get separated the team will have to work harder to find us. And I don’t want to even think about what they might do to you. The way that Galra looked at you… _didn’t_ look at you…” Keith frantically shook his head as if dispelling horrible images. “You’ll be treated like an animal. Or worse.”

Lance gaped at Keith for a moment in pure shock, but then his own expression hardened. “Excuse me, how he looked at _me?_  Keith, if we got separated, I’d be way more worried about you than myself. He looked at you like a piece of meat.”

It was Keith’s turn to be surprised. “What? No, I don’t remember that.”

“Whatever,” Lance rolled his eyes, dismissing it as not important. “Either way, we agree. We _can’t_ get separated. So no matter what, we hang onto each other.”

“Right,” Keith agreed with a nod.

Like that had been some kind of signal, there was a metallic screech, and then one of the gates started to slide up. Lance and Keith scrambled backwards, pressing themselves against the far wall. Somehow Keith ended up in front of Lance, pushing him back behind himself. Lance wanted to protest, but there was no time, because as soon as the gate fully retracted a pair of Galra stepped into the small space, armed with guns and accompanied by five Galra drones.

One of the Galra blinked down at the Paladins in surprise. “What the – ” he said, stumbling to a stop. “A sevam? What the heck is a sevam doing here? Where’s his master?”

He directed his last question to the Galra beside him. The shorter, stouter Galra shrugged. “Beats me,” he said in a nasally voice.

Keith pressed himself, and therefore Lance, more firmly against the wall as the Galra approached. They didn’t raise their weapons, which was a small relief, but neither of them even bothered to address Keith, simply talking between each other. They hadn’t even acknowledged Lance’s presence yet. He wasn’t sure if that counted as a good thing or not.

“Let’s see who you belong to,” the taller Galra muttered as he finally crouched down next to Keith. He reached out with one hand towards the collar around Keith’s neck, and Lance’s breath stuttered at the sight of those sharp claws near Keith’s vulnerable throat. He bit his lip as the Galra’s fingers brushed against the metal.

Keith bared his teeth and snarled.

The noise was amplified by an absurd degree by the enclosed space, ringing through the air. Lance jumped, but the Galra actually flinched back, his eyebrows rising towards his hairline. “Not very well trained, is he?” he tossed back towards his companion with a chuckle.

“Careful Myaz,” the shorter Galra grunted, looking bored with the whole thing. “If he bites you, don’t come crying to me.”

“Well we have to figure out who his master is,” Myaz huffed. “They must have gotten separated by the gates. The thing’s probably panicking, doesn’t know what to do on his own.”

Myaz then put his rifle down on the floor and started reaching out towards Keith’s neck again, this time much more slowly. Lance could see Keith still baring his teeth, but he allowed the Galra to touch his collar, the faintest shudder passing through his body and into Lance’s. Lance felt and heard the Galra’s claws clicking against Keith’s collar, tapping away at symbols or circuits he couldn’t see from his current angle.

“Hmm, that’s odd,” Myaz said suddenly, frowning.

“What is?” his companion called out, starting to walk over. He shifted his grip on his rifle, bringing it up a little higher, narrowing his eyes at the two of them.

“He has no master registered,” Myaz announced, pulling back. His right hand rested on the grip of his rifle as he started down at Keith with a darkening expression.

Lance felt his breath catch in his throat. Shit, shit, _shit_. Inok had never mentioned that the collar actually registered information! Why hadn't he mentioned that? Better yet, why hadn't he or Kolivan thought to actually program it properly, instead of relying on looks alone, just in case something like this happened? Sure, no one had expected that they'd get separated and that the Galra would actually get close enough to Keith to check, but still! Were they really about to have their cover blown and get shot to death all because of Keith's stupid collar?

Based on the way the drones were forming ranks, blocking any chance of escape, he guessed the answer was yes. So this was how he died, huh? He braced himself for the heat of the Galra’s rifles.

But they never came. Instead Myaz growled in frustration. “How many times – I swear Vax, _how many times_ have we told someone to just _register their sevam_. It’s not that hard! It doesn’t take that long!”

“Sheer laziness,” Vax agreed, finally lowering his rifle to his side. “Still, we’ll be able to lecture the master when they come to claim him. Come on, we’ll take him to the main hall. I’m sure his master will make their way there eventually when we get this security breach sorted out.” He then shook his head. “Although maybe not. Clearly the master isn’t very responsible if the sevam managed to get _this_ separated from them.”

“True,” Myaz agreed. Then he reached out and grabbed Keith roughly by the arm, ignoring his gasp of pain, and pulling him upright. “Come on, you.”

“You two,” Vax said at the same time, gesturing to two of the drones. “Take the slave down to the cells in the lower halls. We can send it to the mines on the next ship out. Or maybe the ring. I hear they're running low on slaves for the gladiators to play with.”

Lance’s eyes went wide, and he immediately tried to press further back against the wall. At the same time he looked to Keith, who was slowly being dragged away by Myaz. Keith looked just as terrified as he felt. “No,” Lance gasped. “No!”

“No!” Keith echoed, fighting against Myaz’s hold. “Let go!”

“ _Very_ poorly trained,” Myaz grunted, shifting his grip so that he had Keith more firmly. “Come _on_ , sevam!” He struggled with Keith for a second, trying to get a hold on Keith’s other arm. Behind him Lance saw Vax huff and start striding towards them, ready to help. He panicked, and started to get up, having no idea what he was going to do but needing to do _something._

And then Keith snarled again, curled his fingers, and slashed Myaz across the face with his claws.

Myaz shouted in pain, releasing Keith at once to clutch at his cheek, and Keith took the opportunity to dart back to Lance. Before Lance even knew what was happening, Keith had him bundled up in his arms, tucked so that they were both on their knees with Lance’s face pressed into Keith’s bare belly, while Keith’s back faced the Galra. Keith’s arms were wrapped around his back, clutching Lance so firmly to himself that Lance almost couldn’t breathe. He felt Keith turn above him, snarling and hissing at the Galra like some kind of animal.

“What has gotten into that damn thing?” Vax’s voice was barely audible under Keith’s growls, but Lance was both amused and dismayed to hear that he didn’t sound the least bit concerned.

“Who cares, just shoot him!” Myaz grunted in pain.

There was a momentary whine of charging weapons as the drones started to obey but then he heard Vax speak again. “No. We don’t know who he belongs to, and I’d rather not piss off a high general today. This day has been enough of a mess.”

Lance saw a pair of boots appear next to them, Vax’s he assumed, and saw thick purple hands reach down and start to pull at Keith’s shoulders. Lance hooked his arms around Keith’s waist and held on, even as Keith’s grip tightened further.

“Let go, sevam,” Vax commanded in a no-nonsense tone. Keith just clutched harder. When Vax’s hand came too close to his mouth, Keith snapped his teeth at him, warning him away, still growling.

Vax slapped him.

Lance felt it as Vax backhanded Keith in the side of the head, hard enough that he was thrown sideways. The only thing that kept him from being completely knocked over was Lance’s grip around his waist. Keith hadn’t even had time to cry out in pain. Lance felt his blood run cold, as he got a very,  _very_ bad feeling about this.

“I said, let go,” Vax repeated himself. Keith wasn’t growling anymore, still stunned from the hit to the head, but he didn’t let go either. If anything, his grip tightened.

Vax kicked him in the back.

Keith gasped this time, his body pushing into Lance’s. Lance gasped too, horrified as he felt the hit rock Keith’s body, Vax's armoured boot colliding with Keith's unprotected flesh with a meaty thump. The kick was immediately followed up by another slap to the head, just as violent as the first.

Keith still wouldn’t let go.

The hits rained down, Myaz joining shortly after, the pair of Galra commanding Keith over and over to let go. But Keith wouldn’t. No matter how many times he was struck, kicked, or punched, he clutched Lance to his chest with all his strength. When one of Vax’s kicks had managed to hit Lance’s hand, Keith quickly shifted them so that he was covering Lance completely, his body hiding Lance’s from the attack. Lance ended up with his hands trapped against Keith’s chest, his face pressed into Keith’s collarbone, unable to hang on anymore, or do much of anything. Instead he was forced to listen and feel as Keith was slowly beaten to a pulp above him, while he was helpless to do anything but breathe and pray for it to be over.

Lance was openly sobbing throughout the whole thing, whispering pleas into Keith's skin for it all to stop, just _stop_ , but aside from that first gasp, Keith refused to make a sound.

“Enough,” Vax’s voice suddenly broke out, and finally it seemed to end. “He’s not getting the picture, something must be wrong with him. Maybe you were right. Let’s just shoot him and be done with it, I doubt his master will want such a disobedient sevam back.”

“Right,” Myaz agreed, sounding a little breathless. But then he added, as if something had just occurred to him, “Although...maybe that’s not it.”

“Hmm? What are you talking about?” Vax’s voice grew slightly quieter as he walked back to where the drones had been patiently waiting.

“Well sevams are rarely given the privilege of guarding slaves, right?” Myaz said thoughtfully. “Maybe he’s worried his master will punish him if he loses the slave.”

“Huh. Maybe you’re right,” Vax agreed slowly. Lance was stuck with Keith still lying on top of him, though he wasn’t sure if Keith was actively trying to protect him anymore or if he was just too injured to move. He tried to raise his head over Keith’s shoulder to see what was happening, and could just make out the side of Myaz’s face.

There was a long pause as the two Galra seemed to think it over.

“Alright then, we’ll put them _both_ in a cell,” Vax finally decided. “That way if the sevam acts up again all he’ll damage is the slave. Come on, then. You two, carry the sevam.”

A pair of drones approached, and none-too-gently lifted Keith off of Lance. Lance bit back a hiss when he finally got a look at the damage Keith had endured; Even in the dim light of the hallway it was awful. His ears were bleeding from the blows to the head, his back and sides covered in gashes and cuts and swiftly swelling bruises. One of his shoulders looked dislocated.

“Keith,” Lance moaned softly in despair.

The drones didn’t need to grab him. He stood up on his own, following after Keith’s limp body like a moth drawn to flame. He hardly even looked around, even as Vax and Myaz came up behind him, preventing any hope of escape. His entire focus had narrowed down to Keith’s bloody back.

Their group made its way through the winding hallways of the facility, taking a series of lifts downwards until they were in the very bowels of the communication hub. The drones carried Keith through a wide open space that made Lance think nervously of the few stories Shiro let slip about his days as a gladiator, but all too soon they were entering a narrow passageway lined end to end with tiny cells, all empty. The drones stopped at one of these cells, completely indistinguishable from the rest, and opened the door. They threw Keith unceremoniously inside, uncaring of the way he landed against his wounded arm. Lance bit his lip hard enough to draw blood holding in the curses and threats he wanted to make.

He walked into the cell after Keith willingly, without hesitation. The drones didn’t even look at him as he passed.

All too soon the door slammed shut behind him, and he was finally alone with Keith again.

Immediately he fell to his knees at Keith’s side, reaching out with trembling hands to press his palm against Keith’s chest. “Keith? Keith, can you hear me?” he called out, trying and failing to keep the panic out of his voice. “Keith, please answer me.”

His only response was a pained exhale, but he saw Keith’s eyelids crack open the tiniest bit. Blank, golden eyes started up at him, no sign of iris or pupil to be seen.

“Keith?” Lance called out again, chilled. Keith’s eyes looked strange, unfamiliar, like true Galra eyes, and Lance wondered for a second if Keith had been hit hard enough that his memory might be messed up. Did he even know who Lance was right now?

Regardless, he needed to make sure Keith was okay. He reached down and took one of Keith’s hands in his own, squeezing it. “Keith? Please, it’s me. It’s Lance. Can you hear me?”

“L…Lance?” Keith groaned, his eyes opening wider to show that same blank gold colour with no iris. “What…happened? Where…?”

“They took us down to the slave cells, I think,” Lance quickly explained. “They’re going to keep us here until…your ‘master’ comes to pick us up. Which, of course, isn’t going to happen, but I think that gives us some time.”

“…safe?” Keith breathed, his eyelids sinking. “You’re…okay?”

Lance wanted to throw up. _“Me?_ ” he scoffed. “ _Me?_ Am _I_ okay? How can you even ask that? You’re the one that just got beaten half to death!”

“Are…you…okay?” Keith repeated, more firmly this time. Even without the irises, Lance could feel Keith’s gaze boring into him.

“I…” Lance faltered, realizing that Keith wasn’t going to let this drop until he knew Lance was fine. “Yeah,” he answered reluctantly, defeated. “I’m okay. I’m completely fine. They didn’t land a scratch on me.”

“Hand?” Keith prompted, undeterred.

Lance looked down at his free hand on Keith’s chest, noticing for the first time a dark bruise swelling up along the backside and along his pinky. He’d completely forgotten he’d been kicked, but now that he was reminded, he could feel his hand start to throb in time with his heartbeat, each pulse sending pain shooting up his arm like shocks of electricity. The pinky was bent in a bit, and Lance had a sinking suspicion that it was broken.

But that was nothing compared to Keith’s injuries, so he dismissed it from his mind, focusing on Keith to distract himself from the pain. “It’s fine. A bit bruised, but nothing serious.”

Keith didn’t look completely convinced, but when Lance refused to flinch he finally let out a gusty sigh. A film that Lance hadn’t ever seen before retracted from across his eyes, and the familiar blue irises returned. “Good,” he managed to choke out.

“No, not good,” Lance immediately responded, inwardly sighing in relief. It had been kind of creepy to see Keith’s eyes all gold like that. “You are a _mess_ , who gives a shit about me?”

“I do,” Keith shot back, just as quickly, and Lance was caught so flat-footed that his broken hand spasmed on Keith’s chest, making him hiss in pain. Lance couldn’t help but stare down at Keith, absolutely stunned. Keith had said it so bluntly, so honestly, that for a second Lance truly thought that Keith might actually feel something for him, just like he felt for Keith. Heat rushed to his face, and he subconsciously leaned a little bit closer, his heart beating a bit faster.

But then Keith said, “You’re my partner. I need to look out for you.” And Lance’s heart cracked.

He had to take a moment to just swallow thickly, trying to get his emotions back under control. “R-right. Right,” he choked out, struggling to shake off the feeling of rejection and despair. But then he gave himself a firm mental shake. What was he even  _thinking?_ Keith was in pain, possibly dying, and here Lance was daydreaming about confessing his feelings and having them returned. This was _so_ not the time. 

“Okay, well now it’s my turn to take care of you,” Lance grumbled, trying to get his focus back on the task at hand. He could be heartbroken later. “Let me see your back. Do you want me to take your collar off?” He brushed his fingers gently over the smooth metal, searching for the divot that Inok had shown him. As far as he was concerned, the sooner this stupid hunk of trash was off of Keith’s body, the better.

But to his surprise, one of Keith’s hands weakly came up and grabbed his own. “No,” Keith said, sounding absolutely exhausted. “Don’t.”

Lance couldn’t believe it. After how freaked out Keith had been about the collar in the first place, he didn’t want it off now? “Why not?”

“Because…if someone comes in…” Keith started to explain. He trailed off, too tired to continue, but Lance understood. If Keith had been thrown in here with the collar on, and the next time someone came in here the collar was off, there would be only one explanation for who removed it. And the Galra might be a little bit curious about why a _slave_ had permission to remove the collar of a sevam.

“Okay, fine, good point,” Lance agreed with a sigh, reluctantly letting his hands fall from the collar. “But at least let me help you turn over.”

Together they managed to slowly shift Keith around until he was lying draped across Lance’s legs on his front, resting on the only uninjured part of his body. Lance winced and had to fight back the urge to cry as every shift, every little movement seemed to send shockwaves of pain rippling through Keith’s body, so that he locked up every few seconds. When Keith finally stopped moving, resting on Lance’s leg and whimpering softly, Lance had to just close his eyes for a second and breathe, trying to force the tears back.

There was nothing he could do for Keith’s injuries. He had no bandages, no water to clean them with. The best he could do was give Keith his hand to hold and squeeze when the pain started to get to be too much. It was useless and Lance felt helpless and he had never hated the Galra more. Keith could be dying in this cell with him and there was nothing, absolutely nothing he could do about it.

Time passed. It was impossible to tell how much time in their tiny cell with no windows and only one light that never grew any brighter or dimmer, but it certainly felt like forever. At one point a drone came into the cell and dropped off a tray of some sort of slop that looked so unappetizing that Lance had nearly thrown up at the sight of it. He dragged it over by the tips of his fingers, careful not to shift and move with Keith still on top of him, and raised it to his nose for a delicate sniff.

He gagged, and jerked his head away from the slop. “Oh my god, what the hell is this?” he groaned in disgust.

“Hmm?” Keith hummed, not even opening his eyes. Lance had gotten worried when Keith had seemed to fall asleep at one point, thinking of potential concussions. You weren’t supposed to fall asleep with a head wound, right? And Keith had, like, five head wounds. So he’d been doing his best to keep Keith awake, just in case. Keith, in turn, would try to make some sort of noise occasionally so that Lance would know his efforts were working.

Lance didn’t bother to offer Keith any of the ‘food,’ figuring if anything it might make him _more_ sick. Instead he just pushed the tray aside and hoped really hard that they got rescued soon, before he got so hungry that the slop actually started to look appetizing.

They waited. And waited. And waited some more.

After what Lance estimated was roughly two days, if his assumption that they were receiving two trays of that disgusting slop daily was correct, the cell door creaked open and a tall figure stood in the entrance. Lance had a split second to recognize the figure as Myaz, and then suddenly to his complete shock he found himself pressed against the floor, with Keith hunched over him, snarling again. He hadn’t even registered Keith moving. How the hell had Keith moved so fast as injured as he was?!

But this time Keith didn’t have Lance fully pinned against him, so Lance was able to crane his neck upward to see Keith’s face. And what he saw nearly made him flinch back. Keith’s fangs were bared in a vicious snarl, his ears flat and his eyes back to that solid gold colour. His claws scraped against the cool metal of the cell floor, like he was waiting for the right moment to dig in and lunge. He looked and sounded like some sort of predatory animal, and some primal instinct in Lance’s hindbrain was screaming _run, run, run for your life!_

But his heart was crying out for Keith, who must have been in agony, but was still trying to protect him.

Despite Keith’s rather alarming display, Myaz seemed less than impressed. He sighed, striding into the room and completely ignoring Keith’s growling, even as the volume increased. “Chin up,” Myaz ordered without pause, holding out some sort of device that Lance _really_ hoped wasn’t a weapon. Lance looked up at Keith and silently willed him to listen to the Galra, just this once, just to prevent more pain.

Keith didn’t stop growling, but he quieted down a little. And, to Lance’s relief, he did as he was told, tilting his head to the side and giving Myaz access to his collar. Myaz held up the device to it, which hummed for a second before beeping softly, and then Myaz stepped back, looking down at the screen.

“No one has come to claim you yet,” Myaz said abruptly, though it was hard to tell if he was actually speaking to Keith or just talking to himself. “We’ve managed to reset the whole system, everything has returned to normal, but no one has come. And you’re completely unregistered. I wonder if you really were more trouble than you were worth, and your master was just looking for an excuse to get rid of you. Personally I'd have just shot you myself, but I guess not all Galra are that considerate.”

For a heart-stopping moment, Lance saw Myaz absently look down at Keith like he wanted to kick him in the head again. But before he could do something stupid like throw himself in front of Keith, Myaz just scoffed and turned away, shutting the cell door behind him. Lance let out the breath of air he hadn’t realized he’d been holding.

As soon as Myaz was gone, Keith collapsed with a groan, and Lance had to scramble to catch him. He winced when Keith’s ruined back ended up smacking against his chest, but it had to be better than letting Keith’s battered body hit the floor. He slowly lowered Keith back down across his legs, and settled in to wait again.

Not even a day later, the door opened again. This time, Keith was either too tired or too sore to move, though he still let out a warning growl. Lance looked up to see the Galra that had stopped them in the hall and spoken to Inok what felt like a lifetime ago. The same Galra that had looked at Keith funny, in a way that made Lance’s skin break out into a cold sweat.

Lance narrowed his eyes and started to tense, wary.

“Well, well, well,” the Galra said slowly, striding into the cell with such a cocky attitude that Lance wanted to start growling too. “I see your master hasn’t come for you yet.”

Keith obviously didn’t bother to respond.

The Galra didn’t seem to care though. His eyes seemed unusually bright as he looked over Keith’s body. Lance swore he even licked his lips. “You know, I’ve had a chat with the station master. If you aren’t claimed in another cycle or so, he says I can have you. Imagine, a soldier of my rank with a _sevam_.”

The look on his face became slightly manic. No, worse. _Hungry_. And Lance did _not_ like the way he was slowly stalking towards Keith, who was just lying there. Helpless. Lance’s own hackles started to rise.

But what could he do? He couldn’t attack the Galra. Even if he didn’t get torn limb from limb by his much stronger opponent, the guards would have no issue with just coming in and shooting him. He was a slave to these people, worth less than the clothes on his body. But he couldn’t just sit here and watch this guy get his disgusting hands on Keith!

His eyes fell upon the series of rejected trays of slop that he’d left along the side of the room, and his eyes sparkled as an idea came to him. Keeping one eye on the Galra, who was still pacing the room and monologuing softly to Keith like some kind of villain out of an 80s cartoon, he reached over and ever so slowly shifted one of the trays closer. He had to be careful not to let the scrape of the metal tray across the floor catch the Galra’s attention, but thankfully (or not) the Galra seemed to be completely focused on Keith. Lance told himself to be patient, working the tray closer and closer to where he needed it to be.

When it was in position, he checked the Galra’s location again, did some rough math in his head, turned the tray the tiniest bit to the right to compensate for the angle of the lip, and then fired. He slapped his hand down on the very edge of the tray, making it flip. The wet slop went flying, soaring through the air in a perfect arc to land with a loud splat exactly where Lance had aimed it, right in the Galra’s face.

The Galra shrieked in surprise and disgust, clawing at his face to clear his eyes. By the time he’d cleared it, Lance had managed to grab a second tray and shoveled some of the disgusting mixture into his mouth, making it seem like he’d just been focused on getting a meal. He didn’t even dare look up at the Galra, keeping his eyes trained on the slop like it was the only thing that mattered. He also needed all of his focus to keep himself from gagging. Somehow the slop actually tasted worse than it looked, even though he had been sure that was impossible.

“Stupid slave!” the Galra cursed, and Lance yelped as he was suddenly hit in the side of the head. He went flying, landing sprawled across the other side of the cell, but at least the Galra seemed satisfied with that. He left in a huff, ostensibly to get cleaned off, leaving Keith and Lance behind.

“Ow,” Lance whined the moment he was gone, rubbing at the side of his head. Thankfully the Galra’s vision had been impaired and he’d given Lance a glancing blow at best, otherwise they might have _both_ had concussions. As it was, Lance was in for quite a goose egg.

“Lance?” Keith called out, struggling to his hands and knees. “Lance?”

He sounded quite frantic, so Lance rushed back over and dropped to his knees, despite the way it made his head throb. “Hey, hey, no, it’s okay. I’m fine. Stop moving.” When Keith continued to squirm, he just sighed and helped Keith into a kneeling position, facing each other.

“What happened?” Keith asked as soon as he was facing Lance directly, no less worried than before. “What happened? I wasn’t looking. He yelled, and then…did he hit you?”

Lance scoffed. “Barely,” he said. When Keith’s shaky hand came up to brush against his temple, he caught it, slowly lowering it towards their laps. “I’m fine, Keith. Are you okay?”

“No worse than before,” Keith said honestly, though Lance was pleased to hear there was a bit more life in his voice. He sounded the tiniest bit stronger. “But what did you do? I didn’t see what happened.”

“He was being creepy, so I launched some of the slop at his face,” Lance explained, demonstrating what he meant by slapping the empty tray and making it flip again. When the tray came back down with a clatter, he looked back to Keith. “It was – what? Why are you looking at me like that?”

While it was nice to see Keith’s irises again, the way that Keith was staring at him with open-eyed wonder was something new. “You just flipped the tray and managed to hit him?” Keith repeated slowly.

“Uh, yeah,” Lance said, trying to figure out where Keith was going with this.

“When he was across the room.”

“Pretty much.” Lance pictured the moment, and, yeah, that sounded about right. “Why? What’s wrong?”

“Lance,” Keith gave him a flat look that slowly morphed into an incredulous smile. “That’s amazing. That’s _impossible_.”

Lance blushed, ducking his head. “Yeah, well. It was…”

“ _You’re_ amazing,” Keith finished breathlessly, and Lance’s heart stuttered in his chest. His head whipped up to stare at Keith with wide eyes. To his surprise, he found Keith staring back, that same warm smile on his face.

“I…” Lance struggled to find words, but he’d been rendered mute.

“You really are,” Keith went on, oblivious to the way he was making Lance’s heart pound and his face go red. “I know this is going to sound really bad, but I’m really glad you’re here.” He looked down, ashamed.

“N-no, it’s okay,” Lance quickly stuttered, completely frazzled but still wanting to get that expression off of Keith’s face as soon as possible. “I get it, I completely get it! I’m not happy we’re here, but I am happy we at least aren’t alone, right?”

“Yeah,” Keith sighed, his eyes slipping closed and leaning forward until his forehead was resting against Lance’s. “But I’m also really glad it’s _you_.”

And Lance had no idea how he was supposed to interpret that. Did Keith have any idea what he was even saying? Did he mean that like Lance hoped he meant it? Or was it just the blood loss and head injuries talking? And was it just him, or did Keith’s lips seem to be coming ever so slightly closer?

Lance took a deep breath. Maybe he was just reading into this. Maybe he was just projecting his desires onto Keith. Maybe Keith had absolutely no interest in him at all and Lance was just hearing what he wanted to hear.

But maybe, just _maybe_ , he wasn’t.

And hey, they were trapped in a Galra prison, there was a good chance that they were both going to die here or worse, and Lance was kind of done with living with regrets. He was tired of always second guessing himself. He knew what he wanted to do, so badly that he could taste it, and maybe there was a chance Keith wanted the same thing.

_Fuck it_ , he thought, before letting his eyes slip closed and tilted his chin up the tiniest bit, closing the gap between them.

Their lips had barely brushed. And then a giant yellow robotic lion head burst through the wall across from their cell with a loud explosion, knocking them apart and sending everything into chaos.

Alarms blared, lights flashed, there was a split second where the air rushed through the hallway before a force field surrounded and sealed off the hull breach. Half of the drones patrolling the cells had been smashed in the initial crash or sucked out through the opening, but the rest were slowly regrouping. They started firing at the head of the Yellow Lion, even though their rifles did absolutely nothing to her thick armour.

And then her jaw dropped open, and a bulky figure in yellow armour stepped out, his Bayard already coating the corridor with bursts of light. The drones were mowed down in seconds.

“ **Lance!** ” Hunk roared, the booming yell so full of fury it was almost unrecognizable. “ **Keith!** ”

“Here!” Lance scrambled to his feet and rushed to the cell door. “We’re here!” he shouted as loudly as he could.

Thankfully somehow Hunk heard him, even over the din of his Bayard and the arriving backup Galra drones returning fire. “Pidge!” Hunk shouted, his Bayard never pausing. He just continued to fire blast after blast, turning anything that approached them into a heap of melting slag.

A smaller green figure darted out of the Yellow Lion’s mouth next, dashing across the chaos of battle to skid to a halt next to Lance and Keith’s cell, dropping to one knee to make themselves a smaller target. Lance had never been so happy to see Pidge in his life, their weird tech and all.

Pidge didn’t even look up from their work as the battle raged around them, nor did they acknowledge Lance, too focused on the task at hand. They slapped something against the side of the door panel, probably where the opening mechanism was, and started tapping away on their wrist-mounted screen. Meanwhile Hunk provided a continuous stream of cover fire, occasionally blocking blows with his shield. Neither of them flinched, neither of them hesitated. Both were the picture of concentration as they worked to rescue their friends.

Abruptly Lance turned back to look at Keith. His eyes darted over Keith’s battered body, and he realized that Keith was probably too injured to run. He hadn’t even been able to get to his feet yet. Lance looked out towards the fight happening outside the cell, and then back to Keith. His expression hardened.

“I’m going to carry you,” Lance announced in a no-nonsense tone.

Keith looked up at him in surprise from where he’d been trying to get up using the wall for support. “What? No, you can’t. You’re hurt.”

“You’re way more hurt than I am,” Lance argued back, already striding towards him and reaching out. “And there’s no way you’ll be able to walk properly the way you are now, let alone run. Someone has to carry you. Pidge is too small, and Hunk will be too busy covering us, so it’s gotta be me.”

Keith looked like he wanted to protest, but Lance didn’t give him the opportunity. He simply stopped in front of Keith and turned, offering his back. “Get on,” Lance ordered. “We don’t have much time.”

And thank every star in the sky, instead of arguing Keith just did as he was told, wrapping his arms around Lance’s neck. Lance leaned forward and bent his knees so that Keith wouldn’t have to jump as high, but even still he had to scramble to grab the backs of Keith’s thighs when Keith gave a little hop. Together they managed to shift Keith around until he was settled firmly against Lance’s back in a piggy back hold.

They’d gone at least three days without proper food, the few bites of slop that Lance had managed to choke down hardly counting, Keith weighed more since his transformation, and Lance’s whole body ached, but he locked his knees, took a deep breath, and started walking towards the door. Keith certainly wasn’t light, but Lance was stubborn, and he refused to let Keith fall. He just leaned forward to adjust his balance, and focused on putting one step in front of the other.

Just as he reached the cell door there was an electronic whine, and then the door opened with a metallic shriek, as if it was fighting its own mechanism. Pidge rapidly climbed to their feet, bringing out their own Bayard and shield to provide a bit more cover.

“Get to the lion!” Pidge shrieked over the noise of battle, zapping a droid that got too close with their Bayard. “Go, go, go!”

Lance did not need to be told twice. Moving as fast as he could with aching joints and Keith’s weight across his back, he headed straight for the Yellow Lion’s open mouth, ignoring everything else around him. Pidge followed directly behind, covering their backs, while Hunk brought up the rear. Together the four of them made it into the safety of the Yellow Lion.

The moment they were inside and the Yellow Lion’s jaw slammed shut, Hunk pushed past them, racing for the pilot’s seat. He sat down heavily, grabbing the controls, and yanking. “Hang on,” he said in the same serious voice as before. Pidge grabbed onto the back of Hunk’s chair, while Lance did his best to brace himself against Yellow’s hull while still hanging on to Keith.

Lance had never seen Yellow move this fast. He didn’t know if Hunk was just pushing her harder than usual or if Yellow herself was just especially motivated, but for a moment he could have sworn they were riding in Red herself. The second Yellow managed to escape the hull of the communication hub, she shot out into open space, roaring in defiance.

As soon as they cleared the hub, Lance saw flashes of light. He stared in shock as he watched the Castle of Lions lay down a frankly staggering amount of cover fire, blasting every inch of the hub it could reach. The hub’s defenses were holding up remarkably well, but Lance could see the occasional hit get through.

“ _Hunk, report_ ,” Allura’s voice came through the comms, her words bitten out and tense. She hadn’t bothered with visuals, but Lance could picture the look of deadly calm on her face.

“Extraction successful,” Hunk told her, still sounding nothing like himself. “Both Keith and Lance are safely aboard and we are clear of the blast zone. We’re going to light it up.”

“ _Understood_ ,” Allura snapped, and then the connection was cut.

“Pidge?” Hunk called out gruffly.

“Already on it,” Pidge responded, sounding just as tense. They pulled what looked like an old-fashioned bomb detonator, complete with big, shiny red button, out of the pouch on their hip. “You’re sure we’re clear?”

“Yes,” was all that Hunk said.

Lance was going to ask what was going on, but then in a sudden burst of clarity he remembered the original purpose of their mission. The charges. The charges that presumably none of the Galra had noticed considering they never figured out that Keith and Lance were spies.

Pidge stared out the window at the hub with a mixture of a grin and a grimace on their face. And then they pressed the button.

There was no sound in space. But there was definitely light. The entire right half of the communication hub went up like something out of a Michael Bay movie, setting off a chain of explosions that ripped through the rest of the station in rapid succession. The four Paladins watched it in explode in silence, with no small amount of satisfaction.

By the end of it, the hub was nothing more than a few chunks of rubble, floating through space and bouncing off of the asteroids that had encircled it before. The team watched until the last of the explosions seemed to fade, and then Pidge leaned down and rested a hand on Hunk’s shoulder.

“Take us home, Hunk,” they said softly, suddenly sounding very tired.

And Hunk did.


	4. got our fingers intertwined

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ta da! Here's the end, just in time for season 3 tomorrow to shoot it down like a nuke from the sky. Still, I had a blast writing this, and I hope y'all enjoyed reading it. Thanks to everyone who gave kudos and left messages, you really helped me get this done in time. Cheers, y'all!

They got out. They got home. And Keith had never been so happy to see the Castle of Lions.

Allura and Coran had been waiting for them in Yellow’s hangar when they arrived, which wasn’t surprising, but Kolivan and Inok were there waiting too, which was. Hunk had ended up taking Keith’s battered body from Lance as soon as he deactivated Yellow, and none too soon. Lance looked ready to collapse, and had to lean heavily on Pidge as they were guided towards the awaiting Alteans and Galra. The group had moved as one, with Coran in the lead, Hunk carrying Keith while Pidge handed Lance over to Allura. The Galra brought up the rear of their convoy. Together they headed through the halls of the ship until they arrived at the infirmary.

“Coran worked for two days straight to get one of the healing pods calibrated for you,” Hunk explained gently as he set Keith down on the ground next to the pod in question. “He scanned Pidge and I, and as many Blade of Marmora dudes as he could get, and sort of mushed the data together somehow? I don’t exactly know what he did, but the important thing is it works.”

At that moment, Allura arrived, setting Lance down next to Keith. “You’ll both need rounds in the healing pods,” she said, just as softly as Hunk. Behind her, Coran and Pidge got to work setting the pods up, while Hunk went to fetch bodysuits. Lance groaned, but gave Allura a thankful smile as he settled down on the floor.

Allura was already turning towards Keith, though, a dark expression on her face. “But first, let’s deal with _these_.” Her venom was pointed towards the metal bangles and collar still fixed in place on Keith’s body, and Keith flinched when he looked down at them. He’d almost forgotten they were there. But he lifted his arm willingly when Allura took his wrist, turning it over so she could find the mechanism to unlock it.

When the bangles fell away one by one to Allura’s smooth, cool hands, Keith wanted to sigh in relief. But then she reached up, brushing his hair aside so she could unlock the collar with a dull snap, and he nearly started crying. The feeling of the restrictive metal around his throat falling away was an indescribable relief, like he hadn’t actually believed that they were saved until now. He tried to choke out a thank you, but he couldn’t seem to speak past the lump that had formed in his throat the moment he’d realized that the collar was finally coming off. Allura still smiled at him in understanding anyways, like she’d somehow heard him.

He held his breath as Allura carefully pulled the two halves of the collar away from his neck with a restrained grace, trying to avoid bumping the metal against his damaged skin. Then, the moment she had them away from Keith, she clenched her fists, squeezing. The metal crumpled in her hands like it was made of tin foil.

“Never again,” she growled, her eyes burning with an inner fire. She spoke the words like an oath, a promise that would never be broken. “You are never doing that again.”

“Thank you,” he finally managed to choke out, his eyes slipping shut and his head hanging down. She caught him by the shoulder before he could fall over, gently pushing him upright so that he was leaning against the pod again.

“Don’t you dare thank me,” Allura hissed, sounding just as angry as before, but this time aimed at herself. “I should have never agreed to this mission. I should have never sent you into this mess. I failed to protect you.”

Keith wanted to argue with her, to point out that he’d known the risks going in and that he’d thought it was worth it. That their mission had been a success, and no one had really gotten hurt. That it wasn’t her job to protect them, it was their job to protect her. But a wave of exhaustion crashed over him and by the time me managed to drag his eyes open again, she was already walking away, Coran and Hunk taking her place with a bodysuit each draped over their arms. Keith promised himself he’d talk to her later, after he got out of the healing pod.

That thought led to another, and he struggled to look over at Lance. He still hadn’t had a chance to talk to Lance about what had happened that night when he’d shifted, and now Lance had seen him at his worst, at his most Galra. Lance had said he was fine and that he didn’t care about Keith’s new looks, but that was before they’d been through hell together. And he couldn’t trust anything Lance had said in the Galra cell; for all he knew it had been the heat of the moment, the life-or-death situation. He had no idea what Lance might actually think of him now.

But as they were each loaded into a healing pod side-by-side, he managed to catch Lance’s eye. Lance gave him the tiniest, most exhausted smile that Keith had ever seen, but it was still a smile. Keith did his best to return it.

The pod closed around him and Keith’s eyes slid closed as the healing technology began to work its magic, but he couldn’t help but feel a little bit hopeful. Maybe Lance wasn’t that scared of him after all?

 

==

 

Hunk cried when Lance came out of the healing pod. Of course he did. Lance was kind of relieved, though, because the harsh, serious person he’d seen back at the Galra facility had honestly freaked him out a little. It was nice to see his friend back to normal again.

Pidge was there too, and Lance was surprised to see that they looked a little misty-eyed themselves. When Lance dared bring it up, Pidge had just glared and told him, “I’ve lost too many people, Lance. Don’t you dare do that again.”

And that was enough to shut him up about it, at least.

Keith unsurprisingly was still in the healing pod when Lance got out. He was still there the day after, and the day after that, but Lance was too busy to really be worried. The first day he spent getting cleaned up, getting proper food into his belly (and he never thought he’d actually be excited to see food goo again. That slop in the cell had been _awful_ ), and changing back into his regular clothes. Allura and Kolivan left him alone for that full day, figuring he needed the break, but the next day they tracked him down to debrief him. Lance must have gone over what happened ten times before the two of them were satisfied they knew all the details, what had gone right and what had gone wrong, but he figured he’d do it a hundred times if they left Keith alone about it later. Allura thanked him when it was all over and sent him on his way, before whirling harshly on Kolivan. Whatever she said to him was too quiet for Lance to hear as he left the briefing room, but she sounded furious.

After that there wasn’t much to do but steal the blanket and pillow from his room, drag it down to the infirmary, and settle down next to Keith’s pod. By the time he got there, the ship’s lights had dimmed for the evening, and the only source of light was a series of security lights around the base of the room and Keith’s pod itself. It bathed everything in a cool blue shade; even Keith’s skin seemed more blue than purple.

Lance let the pillow and blanket fall from his hands as he came to a stop in front of Keith’s pod, pressing his fingertips gently against the glass like he could just reach through and touch Keith’s cheek. He looked so peaceful inside, like he was a sleeping princess inside a glass coffin, waiting to be kissed awake.

Good lord, where had _that_ thought come from? Geez, Lance was getting sappy if he was comparing Keith, _Keith_ , the guy who had quite literally just defended him tooth and nail from the Galra and almost died as a result, with Snow White. Not to mention the colour scheme didn’t quite make sense anymore. Maybe when Keith looked human he could have passed for Snow White with the pasty skin and dark hair, but now…after his transformation…after the mission…

And just like that, everything that had happened to them in the past week seemed to catch up with Lance all at once. His fingers curled against the glass pod, clutching at something he couldn’t reach, while sobs started to rock his shoulders. He pressed his forehead against the pod, squeezing his eyes shut and trying so hard to hold back the tears, but it was no use. They came anyways.

“God, Keith,” Lance sobbed, “God, I was just so scared. I thought you were going to die, I thought I was going to have to watch you die right in front of me. I thought I was going to feel it happen.”

His sobs suddenly switched to an angry curse, and he slammed his fist against the pod, the action jarring his mostly healed hand. “Fuck you, asshole. How dare you scare me like that! How dare you just throw yourself away like that! You don’t get to do that! You don’t get to show up in my room, make me fall in love with your stupid face while you’re suffering and in pain, and then go and try to get yourself killed over me! You don’t get to do this to me, you prick!”

He punctuated his rant with another punch to the pod. But inside Keith slept on, oblivious.

Lance’s anger had dried up just as quickly as it had appeared, though, and he slowly sank down to his knees in front of Keith’s pod, fresh tears running down his face. “You scared me so much,” he whispered, face pressed against his knees. “I hate you for that. And I hate how much I don’t hate you at all. I really, really don’t hate you.”

He took a deep, shaky breath, his eyes slipping closed. “I love you,” he confessed to the silent room, his voice no louder than a murmur. The almost inaudible hum of the pod working was his only answer.

Finally he looked up at Keith’s serene face, wiping the tears from his cheeks the best he could with his sleeve. “So hurry up and wake up,” Lance said firmly. “Because I’m going to tell you that. To your face. So just…wake up.”

Keith, of course, didn’t answer.

Lance huffed, his energy spent, and dragged his blanket and pillow over. He’d probably get hell for this tomorrow morning when Pidge or Hunk found him here, considering he was supposed to be resting to finish recovering, but he didn’t care. He wanted to be the first thing Keith saw when he woke up.

In the dim light at the foot of Keith’s healing pod, Lance fell into a fitful sleep.

 

==

 

Inside the pod itself, Keith’s eyelids fluttered.

 

==

 

“Come on, there’s no way I took this long last time,” Lance grumbled, resisting the urge to tap his knuckles against the healing pod for the umpteenth time. Pidge had already yelled at him twice.

“You didn’t,” Hunk helpfully piped up, standing at Lance’s shoulder. “But Coran said that Keith would probably take a bit longer because of his weird biology. He’s doing fine, though. Both Pidge and I checked. He should be waking up any tick now.”

“All the more reason to _back up_ and give him some space,” Pidge snapped. They were on the far side of the room, fiddling with some new piece of tech that Lance was sure would end up as a weapon soon enough, no matter what it had originally been. He was tempted to ask them how the breakdown of the data that they’d stolen from the Galra was going, but he knew Pidge had been working on it pretty much non-stop since they’d gotten Lance and Keith back, and he didn’t want to nag.

Instead, he could just be his usual annoying self. “But then who would catch him when he comes out, like all of you so graciously did for me?” He punctuated his question with a flutter of his eyelashes in Pidge’s direction. Hunk had the decency to wince guiltily, but Pidge just rolled their eyes and ignored him.

Lance was about to make another comment when Keith’s pod let out a soft hiss. Immediately Coran bounced over from the far side of the room, shoving Lance and Hunk aside with hardly a backwards glance, reaching out to catch Keith neatly in his arms as Keith stumbled out of the pod. Lance gaped up at the Altean in shock and outrage. _He_ was going to be the one to catch Keith in his arms like some kind of superhero!

But before he could say anything, Keith was stirring in Coran’s arms, and Lance snapped his mouth shut so he could hear Keith speak.

“Wha…Coran?” Keith groaned, his eyes fluttering open. “Where…are we home?”

“Yes, Keith,” Coran said softly, helping Keith to stand upright and bracing him when his knees wobbled. “You’re back safe and sound. And it looks like the healing pod worked; not a scratch on you!”

Lance didn’t know how Coran could tell – Keith was still in the full body suit after all – but he’d take the man’s word for it. At the same time, though, Keith’s head started whipping around the room, looking for something. “Where’s Lance?”

“Here!” Lance immediately hopped back to his feet and rushed over. Keith’s expression melted from fear to relief when he caught sight of him. “I’m right here. And I’m fine too.”

“Oh thank god,” Keith muttered, his head dropping to rest on Coran’s shoulder. Coran’s eyes seemed to be darting between the top of Keith’s head and Lance’s face with suspicion, but Lance’s eyes were solely on Keith.

“Hey Lance,” Hunk suddenly came up beside him, and Lance fought the urge to jump. He’d completely lost track of every other person in the room. “Why don’t you and I head down to the kitchen to get Keith something to eat while Coran helps him get dressed? I think there’s still some of those pellets Kolivan brought last time he was here.”

“Subtle,” Lance muttered under his breath so that only Hunk could hear, but he let his friend guide him out of the infirmary while Coran helped Keith over to a bench and Pidge held out the change of clothes they’d been sitting next to.

“Sorry,” Hunk said as they turned the corner, heading for the kitchens. “I just figured you might not want to see his back, just in case there _was_ anything still wrong with. You’ve been through enough, bud.”

“I could have handled it!” Lance snapped defensively, all but crossing his arms and pouting. “I saw him actually _get_ those wounds, remember?”

“Yeah, and I didn’t want you to have to relive the moment or something.”

Lance immediately slumped, knowing Hunk had a point. Even just the memory of what Keith had looked like after he’d been beaten was enough to sour his stomach. He didn’t know how he’d feel if it turned out there was permanent damage. He only hoped that Keith got away with some minor scars at worst. Scars were badass, scars wouldn’t be too bad.

“Also,” Hunk continued, “I kinda wanted to talk to you. I haven’t really had a chance since we got you back.”

“Oh?” Lance tilted his head towards Hunk, curious but also somewhat wary. He remembered the last conversation they’d had together before the mission.

Sure enough, Hunk glanced back over his shoulder, checking to see if anyone was around, and then leaned in closer. “I wanted to make sure you were okay, considering you just had to watch the guy you’re in love with go through some really awful stuff. I figured you might want to talk about it?”

Lance’s mouth dropped open. “I…I don’t…” He stumbled and stuttered for a moment, trying to speak without knowing what he wanted to say. And bless Hunk, he just waited. The two of them slowed to a stop just outside the kitchen, facing each other as Lance struggled to talk.

Thankfully, Hunk seemed to realize that Lance was just fumbling, because he began to talk again. “I remember how upset I was when Shay got injured back on the Balmera. Seeing her hurt, because of me? That really, really sucked.”

Lance immediately snapped his mouth shut and paid attention. He’d known that Hunk had a bit of a crush on the sweet Balmeran girl, and had freely teased his friend about it, but this was the first time Hunk was actually opening up to him about his feelings. He knew better than to interrupt.

“And then when we went back for her, seeing her hanging there all chained up, knowing that she’d probably been hurt while we were gone? It was the worst feeling in the world,” Hunk continued, squeezing his eyes shut as the memory rushed through him. “I’m the Yellow Paladin, my role is to protect. But I didn’t protect her. I failed her.”

“Hunk,” Lance crooned, reaching out to rest a comforting hand on Hunk’s arm. He’d never seen Hunk this upset; at least not seriously. This had clearly been tearing Hunk up inside for a while, and Lance felt kind of bad that he’d never noticed. “Why didn’t you ever say anything? Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I wanted to,” Hunk said sadly, looking down at his feet. “But there was never time. First we had the castle go crazy, then we were rescuing Allura, and then we all got separated. By the time we were all together and safe again, it kind of didn’t seem to matter as much.”

“Ah, geez, Hunk,” Lance sighed and gave Hunk’s arm a squeeze. “Well it’s okay now. Shay is fine, her people are free, and it’s all thanks to you. Everything’s okay now.”

“Yeah,” Hunk agreed, finally lifting his head. “Exactly. That’s what I wanted to tell you as well. Because I’m not sure it’s hit you yet, but you guys made it. You got out. You’re okay, Keith’s okay, and you’re both safe now.”

Lance went still for a moment, his hand still on Hunk’s arm. And then he threw himself into Hunk’s arms, wrapping his own around Hunk’s neck and squeezing. “Hunk, the second I saw you walk out of the Yellow Lion, I knew we were safe,” he said fiercely into Hunk’s shoulder, clutching at Hunk’s back. “I never doubted you’d get us out for a second.”

Hunk hugged him back just as tightly, and it truly loosened something in Lance’s chest to be held in Hunk’s arms. A million, billion, trillion miles from Earth, and he hadn’t felt this close to home since they’d left.

Eventually though the hug had to end. Lance was the first to pull away, sniffing and rubbing surreptitiously at his eyes. Hunk was just openly crying, but he was also smiling, so Lance figured they were going to be okay.

“Now come on,” Hunk said, patting Lance on the shoulder. “Let’s see if I can make some kind of pizza out of food goo and Galra pellets.”

“Oh _this_ I gotta see,” Lance groaned, but happily followed his friend into the kitchen.

 

==

 

Keith was ready to pull his hair out.

He’d been trying to get Lance alone all day, but after just getting out of the healing pod, he’d been pretty much surrounded by people. He hadn’t been able to get a moment to himself for more than ten ticks at a time. And the few times he did find some time to himself, Lance was nowhere to be found!

But they needed to talk. They _really_ needed to talk.

 

==

 

When his bedroom door slid open that night, Lance was already half out of bed, his feet on the floor but his legs still tangled up in the blankets. He’d only been dozing at best though; he had a feeling he’d be getting a visitor tonight.

“Hey,” Lance said softly, as Keith stepped into the room and let the door slide shut behind him.

“Hey,” Keith responded, just as quiet. His eyes were trained on the floor, his hands nervously clenched into fists at his sides.

Lance took the opportunity to look Keith over. Even though he’d seen Keith since he’d gotten out of the pod, Keith had always been surrounded by other people constantly checking on him, making sure he was okay, giving him food. Lance hadn’t gotten a good look at how Keith was doing until now. He took his time, checking for any signs of lasting injuries, but it seemed like the healing pod had done its job.

By the time his wandering gaze made it up to Keith’s face, Keith had apparently gained the confidence to look up. Their eyes locked, and Lance was surprised to see Keith’s cheeks looking a little flushed. Then again, it was possible Keith had noticed him all but checking him out. He wrinkled his nose, imagining what that must have looked like.

But rather than dwell on it and get embarrassed, Lance just moved on. “How are you feeling?” he asked, shifting over on the bed to make some room. He patted the spot next to him hopefully, and was pleased when Keith came over without hesitation to sit gingerly on the bed. But when he sat, he stared down at his feet, not willing to meet Lance’s eyes again. Something strange was going on.

“I’m fine,” Keith answered, his voice a little bit husky. Even though the walls were thick and there was no way that anyone would be able to hear them even if they were shouting, something about the lateness of the hour, the dimness of the room, kept their voices low. “You?”

“I’m doing just fine,” Lance said. “But I’ve been in a healing pod before. Nothing new for me.”

“Is it normal for your mouth to be super dry after?” Keith asked, still not looking up. His ear did twitch, though, when Lance hummed thoughtfully, so Lance knew he was listening.

“Huh, now that you mention it, I guess. I didn’t really notice before.”

“And…um,” Keith hesitated, his ears flattening, and Lance sat up a little bit straighter. Keith was all but clawing at the bed sheets, his entire body stiff and awkward. Something was _definitely_ wrong here.

“What?” Lance prompted when Keith didn’t continue. “What happened?”

“Is it, um. Is it normal to be able to hear everything that’s happening outside the pod while you’re healing?” Keith asked breathlessly, rushing to get through the question like the words were burning the inside of his mouth.

“Bwuah?” Lance blinked. “Really? You were awake in there? That’s weird. No, I pretty much sleep through everything,” he said with a frown. “I think that’s the way it’s supposed to work anyways. We should probably talk to Coran about that, see if he can – wait.”

Lance felt the blood drain from his face as he realized what Keith was trying to say. “Wait. You could hear everything? As in… _everything?”_

The way Keith’s shoulders seemed to hunch in a little was all the answer Lance needed.

Lance heart seemed to skip a beat or two in his chest, before picking up double time. “Oh my god. Oh my god. You heard that. You heard me when I…when I came in that night. Oh my god.”

“It was, uh, a bit muffled through the glass,” Keith said weakly, as if that would help somehow. “So I don’t think I heard _everything_ everything. But, um. I sure heard a lot.”

Lance swallowed thickly. Suddenly he couldn’t look at Keith either. The two of them sat side-by-side on the bed for a few minutes, unable to find the words to break the awkward silence.

But then Lance’s eyes landed on the doorway leading into his bathroom, and he abruptly remembered what had happened nearly a week ago in this very room. And all of the stuff that he and Keith had been through since. And hadn’t he told himself that he was going to try to be honest with Keith about his feelings? No more regrets?

He had come so close to losing Keith forever, before he’d ever really even had a chance to see if they could become more than just friends, teammates. And they were Paladins, dangerous situations were going to keep popping up over and over. There was always a chance that the next day could be their last. As depressing as it was to think about, it was also the reality check he needed. He owed to himself, to both of them, to at least _try_ to tell Keith how he felt. He had to. Or he’d probably regret it for the rest of his life.

Still, confessing, saying the words out loud now that he knew Keith could actually hear him, was a lot harder than just making up his mind. He closed his eyes, and took a deep breath, trying to gather up his courage.

Only to have it all leave him in a whoosh, courage and breath and all, as he felt Keith’s hand suddenly clasp his own. He looked down at their joined hands with wide eyes, and then up at Keith.

Keith was blushing furiously, his cheeks stained a dark plum colour, and he was pointedly looking away, but he didn’t let go of Lance’s hand. Even when Lance turned it over and laced their fingers together.

“Is this…okay?” Lance asked slowly, his pulse jumping. This was promising, of course, but he still didn’t actually know where he stood with Keith at the moment.

“…yeah,” Keith admitted in a very tiny voice. “It’s nice.”

Lance looked back down at their joined hands, his heart pounding in his chest. “I, uh, don’t want to question a good thing or anything, but,” he jiggled their hands, lifting them up to Keith’s line of vision. “What, exactly is happening here?”

Keith looked towards their joined hands, to Lance, and then away again. He couldn’t seem to maintain eye contact. “You like me,” Keith stated, blunt and to the point. “You...you _love_ me.”

Lance couldn’t help it, he flinched. Having his feelings just thrown out there like that was kind of upsetting. But to be fair, he’d technically said it first. He just hadn’t expected Keith to actually hear him at the time. “Yeah,” he finally confessed, quiet and resigned. “I really, really do.”

“I honestly didn’t expect that,” Keith continued, which made Lance boggle at him for a second.

“Are you serious?!” he squealed, which at least made Keith look at him, albeit in alarm. “Why the hell not?!”

“What?” Keith asked, staring at Lance in confusion, like he had no idea why anyone would actually be interested in him. Well that just wouldn’t do.

“I mean, just look at you!” Lance gestured towards Keith’s body with his free hand. “You’re absolutely gorgeous, for one. You’ve got a great smile, a killer body, and I’ve always thought your eyes were amazing. You’re beautiful!”

Keith went from startled and bashful to frustrated as Lance spoke. “M-maybe before,” he argued, although he sounded unsure. “But look at me now, Lance. I’m _purple_. I’m not human.”

“So? Does that change anything I just said? Other than making the killer body statement more literal, I guess,” Lance couldn’t help but add. It was stupid and cheesy, yes, but it made Keith snort so he counted it as a win. “You’re still gorgeous, Keith.”

“I’m not human,” Keith repeated, holding out a clawed hand.

“Since when have I cared about that?” Lance pointed out with a smirk. When Keith opened his mouth to argue, Lance immediately spoke over him. “Nyma,” he said. “Florona and Plaxum, the mermaids. Allura.”

“All women,” Keith shot back, though with less force than before. “None of them Galra.”

But Lance just scoffed, flipping a hand dismissively. “Just because I don’t openly hit on alien dudes doesn’t mean I’m not looking. I’m just a bit pickier, is all. And who cares, you’re only _half_ Galra. More importantly, you’re all Keith. And that’s what matters to me.”

Keith flushed darkly and looked away again, but Lance could see the shy smile growing on his face. “That was super cheesy,” he told Lance.

“Yeah, I think I stole that from one of my sister’s rom-coms,” Lance admitted with a careless shrug. “But whatever. My point is, I like you. A lot. A lot-lot. No matter what you look like now. And for more than just your looks. I admire your determination, your passion, your kindness, the way you just seem to roll with whatever life throws at you. I think it’s adorable that you sometimes wrinkle your nose at the food goo when you think no one is watching. I like the sound of your voice and the way that you smile. I like you for you. No, I…” He took a deep breath and sighed. “I love you. I really do.”

Then he hesitated, his confidence leaving him as he realized that this had all been about him pouring out his heart so far. “And…uh…any thoughts on that?”

Keith was silent for a very long time. And then, just before Lance was about to give up and pull his hand from Keith’s, his heart breaking, Keith spoke.

“I’ve wanted to kiss you since the moment I watched you shoot Sendak,” he admitted in the quietest voice Lance had ever heard.

Lance went very, very still.

“I’ve wanted to kiss you for so long. I thought you were beautiful from the moment you walked in to help me rescue Shiro, but I had no idea who you were. And then we faced Sendak together, and we had that moment, and I thought…god, I want him. I want this. I fell harder for you than I’ve ever fallen for anyone in my life.”

Keith finally turned back towards Lance, although he still didn’t look up. Instead he focused on their joined hands. “But then you forgot it, and I thought that maybe it was better that way. Maybe you did forget, maybe you were lying, but either way I thought I’d never have an actual chance. You were unobtainable. You were so confident and flirty, and you never, _ever_ looked at me like that, I figured I never had a chance.”

Keith then laughed, but it wasn’t a happy sound. “And then _this_ happened,” he gestured to his body, “and I figured that was it. It was officially never going to happen. But I still couldn’t help it. I still…wanted you. I still...loved you.”

His eyes slowly rose and met Lance’s own, and Lance’s mouth went dry. “That’s why I couldn’t let anything happen to you, back at the hub. I had to keep you safe. Not because of the mission, not because we’re partners, because I – mmph!”

He was cut off as Lance finally did what he’d wanted to do back in that cell what felt like a lifetime ago. He cupped the back of Keith’s head with his free hand, palm brushing against one fluffy ear, and dragged Keith into a kiss. Keith went stiff for a split second, and then melted into the kiss with a quiet moan.

When Lance finally pulled back, he was feeling a little bit breathless, though the kiss had hardly gone on that long. He watched Keith’s eyes flutter open to stare at him in surprise.

“I love you,” Lance announced, wanting to make sure that was perfectly clear. “I’ve loved you for probably as long as you’ve loved me and I’m just an idiot and I didn’t realize. I’m sorry it took me so long. But I love you, I want you, no matter what.”

“I…love you too,” Keith said, a little bit breathless. And then, groaning, he said, “God we’re idiots, aren’t we?”

“Yup!” Lance agreed cheerfully.

Keith sighed good-naturedly and pressed his forehead against Lance’s collarbone. “Oh well. At least we kind of knew that already.”

“Very true. And at least everyone else will be happy to hear we got our shit together.”

“They knew?!” Keith shrieked, his head whipping up.

“Pidge and Hunk apparently had a betting pool on how long I’d take to figure it out.”

Keith’s mouth opened and closed for a second, and then he asked, with complete sincerity, “Who won?”

And Lance just laughed and kissed him again.

 

==

 

Kissing turned to touching, which turned to making out. It was all too easy for Lance to shift them, pushing Keith slowly onto his back on top of Lance’s soft sheets while Lance swung his body around to hover over him. Keith gasped softly as Lance broke away from his lips to trail kisses along his jawline, from the base of one fur-covered ear down the side of his neck. It took him a second to notice, but when he did his eyes went wide. Lance was tracing the line of where the collar had been locked around his throat.

“Lance,” he whined, his hands coming up to clutch at Lance’s shoulders.

Lance raised his head only long enough to silence Keith with another kiss, their breaths mingling as Lance hummed against him. And then Lance pulled away.

“I’m going to make you forget ever having that stupid thing on your neck,” Lance promised fiercely. And then he immediately set to doing just that, nipping and licking at Keith’s skin. Keith gasped and squirmed as Lance worked, his mouth dropping open to pant hotly when Lance dared to nip at the skin just above his collarbone.

But Keith wasn’t one to just lie there and take it. His hands roamed over Lance’s back, brushing his claws tantalizing over the patch of skin between Lance’s sleep shirt and his pants that had become bare as Lance’s shirt rode up. As Lance placed a tender kiss against Keith’s throat, his hands momentarily twitched, pressing his claws more firmly against Lance’s back. Not enough to break the skin, but enough to be felt.

Lance jerked away from Keith’s neck with a hiss, his hips bucking forward.

Keith’s ears perked up, and his eyes went bright. “Oh?” he breathed, before he repeated the action, dragging his claws slowly across Lance’s back and around his sides. Lance arched above him like a cat, his eyelids going half-mast and his mouth dropping open in a wordless moan. “Oh,” Keith repeated.

“In case it wasn’t clear, I _really_ don’t have a problem with the Galra thing,” Lance confessed after a moment of struggling to remember how to speak. He didn’t even bother looking ashamed, giving Keith a saucy smirk and a wink.

“Huh,” Keith said flatly. And then, he gave Lance a smirk of his own. “Well, in that case.”

Lance yelped as Keith reached up, grabbing his wrists and tugging. Before Lance even knew what was happening, Keith had manhandled him so that now it was _Lance_ flat on his back with Keith hovering over him. Keith stared down at him with a predatory look, his eyes almost glowing in the darkness of the room, as he held Lance’s wrists pinned above his head. Lance tested Keith’s grip, and found it like iron locking him in place. He couldn’t budge an inch. He swallowed thickly, and licked his lips.

“Oh boy,” he said weakly, though he was pretty sure the bulge growing in his sleep pants betrayed how he was actually feeling about this turn of events.

Still, Keith asked him, “Is this okay?”

“Oh yeah, yes, yes, more than okay,” Lance quickly assured him, nodding so furiously he thought he might strain something. “Definitely okay with this.”

“Are you sure?” Keith pressed, his brow furrowing in concern. “I’m not hurting you, am I?”

“No, I promise, I swear, you are not hurting me, I’m absolutely okay, this is more than okay, Keith, _please_ ,” he whined, his hips bucking up off of the bed, searching for some kind of friction. “ _Please_ ,” he begged.

And bless him, Keith didn’t wait for any more encouragement. He let go of Lance’s wrists with one hand, keeping them pinned together with the other with effortless strength. His free hand then started roaming across Lance’s belly, hiking up his sleep shirt to his armpits to give Keith more skin to play with. Lance whimpered and squirmed as Keith dragged his claws across Lance’s ribs, flicking a nipple, and dragging teasingly along the band of Lance’s sleep pants, but he couldn’t escape Keith’s hold.

He was about to start begging again when Keith suddenly leaned down, his mouth opening wide, to drag his hot, wet tongue up Lance’s chest, from belly button to collarbone. Lance’s words were cut off as they changed into a strangled moan, his head falling back against the bed sheets. He could only pant helplessly as Keith lapped away at his chest and stomach, the muscles in his belly jumping whenever Keith found a particularly sensitive area.

And then Keith nipped at his hipbone with those sharp teeth, and he nearly came in his pants.

“Keith!” he yelped, and then he let out a low groan. “Keith, dude, buddy, you gotta stop teasing me, or this is going to be over real fast.”

Keith snorted, but he at least leaned back, giving Lance’s skin a break. He didn’t let go of Lance’s wrists though. “Okay. Well. What do you...want to do?” he asked carefully, his eyes darting up to Lance’s face before coming back down to where his hand was resting on Lance’s hip. “I mean, are we...um.”

“Gonna have sex?” Lance finished for him with a raised eyebrow. “Well, yeah? I mean, I was kind of hoping that’s where this was going anyways. Did you _not_ want to have sex?”

“I do!” Keith immediately objected. “I do, I want to, I do. I just, uh…” He looked away again.

“You just what?” Lance echoed, feeling concern bubbling in his gut. His hard on started to wilt a little. “What’s wrong.”

“It’s just...there have been some...changes,” Keith choked out, weakly gesturing to his crotch. “And I, um.”

When he trailed off, Lance started to push himself upward. This time Keith’s hands fell away, allowing Lance to squirm free without trouble. Lance sat up on the bed, Keith hovering awkwardly over him on his knees, and reached out to cup Keith’s face.

“Keith,” Lance said seriously, tilting Keith’s head up until he was looking Lance in the eye. “I swear, I don’t care. Whatever you’ve got down there now, even if it’s like, tentacles or something, I promise I don’t care. I still love you, okay.”

Keith searched his face for a moment, before smiling weakly. “Okay.”

And then, because he couldn’t resist, Lance added, “Actually, if it _is_ tentacles, I might even be more than okay with it. There was this anime I saw once, I swear I saw it by accident, I was trying to find episodes of that swimming anime with the pretty guys, and it had this one scene that involved tentacles that was disturbing as hell, and yet oddly arousing.”

Keith’s expression went from tentative to aggravated in a single tick. “ _Lance_ ,” he groaned.

“I’m just saying!” Lance said with a laugh, raising his hands defensively. “Tentacles are okay! Ooh, what if it’s actually two dicks? Do you have two dicks now? That would be awesome too, we could work with that! Or what if you have...”

“Lance!” Keith yelled over Lance’s increasingly more bizarre guesses at Keith’s new anatomy. “I don’t have tentacles, I don’t have two dicks, and for the love of god, _no_ , it isn’t retractable! It’s still a dick!”

“Then what’s the big fuss about?” Lance asked. “Show me.”

Keith just huffed and shook his head, though Lance was pleased to see he looked more amused than angry. His plan had worked, then; Keith was less self-conscious about his body now. After all, compared to tentacles, whatever Keith was hiding in his pants couldn’t be _that_ freaky.

Sure enough, when Keith undid the drawstring of his sweatpants and pushed them down his hips, his face flushed and his eyes averted, nothing truly horrifying sprung out. Lance stared at Keith’s cock with wide-eyed wonder instead, feeling his mouth start to water. Definitely not tentacles.

He reached out to it subconsciously. They both hissed and jumped when Lance’s searching fingertips made contact, but Lance quickly recovered and stretched out his hand again.

Keith let out a shaky breath as Lance’s hand closed around his cock. His eyelids fluttered when Lance gave it an experimental stroke. When he managed to get control of his breathing again, he looked Lance in the eye, aiming for defiance, but missing pretty badly. “Well?” he asked, hoping the tremor in his voice wasn’t too obvious.

“Well, what?” Lance responded absently, still running his hand over Keith’s heated flesh. “It’s a dick.”

“It’s...different,” Keith argued, pouting just a little.  _He’d_ certainly freaked out a little when he’d first saw it. While the added size had certainly been a nice change, the fact that it was ribbed along its entire length, the head of his cock shiny and deep purple like an eggplant, had been a bit disturbing. It still looked mostly like a human penis, but the ridges that covered the length of it, like piping insulation, had definitely taken some getting used to.

For him, at least. Lance apparently was perfectly comfortable with rubbing his hand along those bumps, his eyes fixated on Keith’s dick like it was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. And then he licked his lips, and Keith’s dick twitched in his hand, a glistening fluid leaking from the tip.

“Shit,” Lance breathed. And then before Keith knew what was happening, Lance leaned forward and locked his lips around the tip of Keith’s cock.

Keith folded over Lance’s body like he’d been punched, his hands gripping Lance’s shoulders tightly to keep himself from collapsing completely. He let out a low moan that echoed loudly through the room, but he didn’t care. It wasn’t like anyone could hear them anyways. All he cared about was the feeling of wet warmth suckling at the tip of his cock.

All too soon though, Lance pulled away with a wet pop, licking his lips and humming thoughtfully. Keith whined shamelessly, his hips twitching fruitlessly against the open air.

“Weird,” Lance muttered. “I expected it to taste different.”

“From what?” Keith asked breathlessly, struggling to get himself back under control. His claws spasmed on Lance’s shoulders.

“Regular human jizz,” Lance answered simply, staring at Keith’s dick thoughtfully.

Keith blinked at him in surprise. “You’ve sucked a dick before?”

“Only once,” Lance admitted shamelessly, though Keith couldn’t help but notice the way the tips of his ears were going a bit red. “There was a party. The guy was pretty, and offered to return the favor, and I was drunk and horny as hell. It was fun. You?”

“A few times,” Keith admitted evasively, and luckily Lance seemed to realize he didn’t want to get into it, because he didn’t press the issue.

“What about sex?” Lance asked instead. “I’ll admit I’ve seen a lot of porn, but that one blowjob was kind of it for me when it comes to actual gay sexual experience. So I’m kind of just making this up as I go.”

“That’s okay,” Keith assured him, briefly stepping off of the bed so that he could remove his clothes properly. “That’s okay. I think you’re doing pretty good so far.”

Lance watched Keith strip with hungry eyes. As Keith’s pants fell away, revealing endless smooth lilac skin, he even went so far as to whistle. Keith blushed and ducked his head, but still laughed at Lance’s shameless flirting. The sound was enough to bring a wide smile to Lance’s face.

“Goddamn, you’re gorgeous,” Lance said, openly looking Keith over.

Keith’s blush only got deeper, spreading down his neck and across his shoulders. But then he surprised Lance by doing a little twirl, adding in a booty shake in Lance’s direction. Lance’s burst of surprised laughter rang through the room. He started clapping appreciatively.

“Alright, alright,” Keith rolled his eyes, trying and failing to hide a grin. “You’ve had your show, now it’s your turn.”

And Lance was more than happy to do just that. As Keith took a seat back on the bed, Lance sprung up, taking position in the center of the bedroom with his back to Keith. He looked back, giving Keith a flirty wink, and then started to strip, swinging his hips and humming a sexy song at the same time. He heard Keith giggle, and when he looked over his shoulder again, blowing Keith a kiss, Keith was staring back at him with a wide smile and bright eyes.

Lance’s stripping routine went well, if he did say so himself, and he whipped off his pants in a big finish, whirling around to pose with his hands on his hips, his naked body on full display. He definitely didn’t have the toned muscles like Shiro, or the beefy arms like Hunk, or the perfect figure like Allura, but he was comfortable enough with his looks. He was hot, and he knew it.

Still, the way that Keith was staring at him with open-mouthed approval definitely didn’t hurt his ego one bit.

“I am so sad I haven’t seen you naked before,” Keith admitted bluntly. Lance laughed again, and sauntered back over to the bed. He stopped when he was standing between Keith’s spread legs, resting his hands on Keith’s shoulders. Keith’s own hands came up to clutch at Lance’s hips, his claws just barely making contact. They smiled at each other.

“You wanna fuck me?” Keith asked after a moment.

Lance couldn’t help it; his eyes bugged out a little. “Wait, what? Really?”

“Yeah,” Keith answered easily, shrugging one shoulder. “I kind of figured it might be safer that way. I’m a lot stronger now, and I don’t want to accidentally hurt you.”

Which was completely fair, but still Lance hesitated. “I trust you, Keith,” he told him seriously, leaning forward to press a kiss to Keith’s lips.

Keith was smiling when he pulled back. “That’s good to hear. I’ll keep it in mind for next time. But this time, I think you should fuck me.”

‘Next time’ was certainly a nice thought, enough to eliminate any concern Lance had left. He gave Keith a nod. “Okay. Fair enough. And hey, I’m not complaining. You want me to fuck you? I think I can handle that.”

Keith laughed at him, and then looked over his shoulder towards the bottles and jars of skincare products Lance had lined up on his desk.

“Think you’ve got anything in there we can use for lube?” he asked, jerking his head towards the desk. “Because if you don’t, _no one_ is getting fucked tonight.”

Lance looked back at his desk with a frown, humming thoughtfully. He momentarily abandoned Keith and the bed to wander over, picking up one of the bottles and holding it up consideringly while he checked the label. With a huff he put it down, shaking his head. Two others were similarly discarded, but then he picked up a small jar, and his eyes lit up.

“Here we go,” he declared, walking back towards the bed with the jar in hand. “I’ve never personally tried this, but I read on the internet that it can be used for lube, and if it’s on the internet it _must_ be true.” Keith eyed the jar with curiosity, but unfortunately Lance’s hand was covering the label and he couldn’t see what it was.

Deciding it didn’t matter, he simply shifted further back onto the bed so that he was lying on it comfortably, spreading his legs open wide and tilting his hips up, getting into position. His head whipped up when he heard Lance make a strangled noise, and he looked up to find Lance staring at him with wide eyes and a bright red face.

“What? What’s wrong?” Keith asked.

“Wow, you are just...ready to go,” Lance breathed, his eyes locked on the space between Keith’s legs with an expression between desire and fear. “I might not be.”

“Why?” Keith frowned, looking at Lance with concern. “What’s wrong?”

“I have no idea how to do this,” Lance admitted, a bit shamefully. He momentarily looked towards Keith’s face before he was forced to look down. “What if I hurt you?”

“Well if I try to do it, I’ll definitely hurt myself,” Keith pointed out truthfully. When Lance looked up questioningly, Keith wiggled his fingers, tipped with their sharp claws, at him. Lance’s eyes went wide with understanding, and he let out a little snort.

“Ooh, yeah. That would suck.”

“So you have to do it,” Keith finished. He reached out towards Lance, grabbing him gently by the wrist and pulling him closer. “I promise, I’ll talk you through it, and I’ll tell you to stop if it’s getting painful. But I really want you to do this. Please?”

Lance hesitated for a second, still unable to meet Keith’s eyes, and then he gave a short, tiny, nod. “Okay. But you _have_ to tell me.”

“I promise,” Keith said, before lying back and taking position once again. “Trust me, you’ll be fine. Now come here.”

Lance turned out to be a marvelous student, eager to please, and happy to follow Keith’s instructions. Keith sighed and gasped as Lance’s fingers sank into him, the oil coating his fingers just a touch cooler than he would have liked, but when Lance started pushing deeper inside, Keith’s eyes slipped closed and he moaned. Soon, he’d have Lance’s cock inside him, and he was practically ready to beg for it. But this needed to be done. The last thing he wanted was for one of them to get hurt, have Lance freak out, and then they’d never do this again. He needed patience.

“Okay, add another,” Keith instructed when he felt his body relax against Lance’s probing fingers. Lance briefly removed them, just long enough to coat them in more slick, before he pushed back in, making Keith feel even fuller than before. “Oh god, yes. That’s good.”

“Fuck, Keith,” Lance breathed, and Keith raised his head for just a second, looking down between his spread legs to see Lance watching him with pupils blown wide and a punch-drunk look on his face. And suddenly Keith wanted him closer, so much closer.

He reached down and grabbed Lance’s wrist, stopping him from pushing in any deeper. “I’m ready,” Keith told him.

“Are you sure?” Lance asked, though he was already lining himself up, looking just as eager as Keith felt. But Keith also noticed the way his hands were shaking, the way he kept licking his lips, and Keith’s eyes narrowed thoughtfully.

Rather than answer Lance, Keith just surged up on the bed, using his Galra strength to flip them over before Lance could react. When they landed, Lance was once again flat on his back, Keith pinning his wrists with one hand while he straddled Lance’s waist.

“Holy shit, Keith, what are you - oooooh god,” Lance cut himself off, throwing his head back and letting out a loud moan. Keith never even paused, still lowering himself down on Lance’s cock at a steady rate, bracing himself on Lance’s chest with his free hand. Every inch that sunk into him sent fire rushing through his skin, and Keith’s eyes fluttered as he finally bottomed out, resting with his hips flush against Lance’s own.

“Oh my god,” Lance breathed, looking up at Keith above him like he couldn’t believe this was happening. “Oh my god.”

Keith just smirked, and wordlessly lifted himself up on his knees before sinking back down. Lance whimpered, his head falling back again.

“Feel good?” Keith asked coyly, shifting his grip on Lance so that he was holding Lance’s wrists more firmly.

Lance just groaned in response. “Yes, yes, fuck yes, please move!”

Well, if he was asking so nicely, who was Keith to refuse? Keith started to ride Lance’s cock with abandon. He almost purred out loud as every stroke of Lance’s cock inside him send waves of pleasure through him, curling his toes and making his hands on Lance’s wrists flex and clench. It had been so long since he’d been properly fucked, and it felt _amazing_.

Beneath him, Lance was whining and squirming, bucking up into each of Keith’s downward thrusts. His wrists twisted in Keith’s hold, even though there was no way he could possibly break free. Keith decided to squeeze them, pressing down just a bit harder to prove this, and Lance made a high-pitched keening noise, his hips jerking upwards with enough force that he nearly knocked Keith off.

“Oh, you like that?” Keith asked breathlessly, pushing back against Lance’s hips with just as much force, basking in the way it made Lance’s cock sink even deeper inside of him. “You like me holding you down?”

“Fuck yes,” Lance moaned. “Yes, god, yes. I love a man that can kick my ass.”

“I really could,” Keith agreed easily with a laugh, struggling to maintain his composure as he lifted himself up far enough that Lance’s cock almost slipped out, and then slamming back down. They both moaned as one. “I really could. But not today.”

“No ass kicking, only ass fucking?” Lance suggested, and Keith let go of his wrists with one hand to smack Lance on the chest. Lance yelped in protest, but he was also laughing so Keith knew he hadn’t hit him too hard.

“You’re terrible,” Keith grumbled, making sure to add an extra twist to his hips when he came down. _That_ shut Lance up, turning his snarky laughter into a low gasp. Lance started struggling against Keith’s hold again, and Keith looked down at him in concern. “What, am I hurting you?”

“I wanna touch you,” Lance said, his eyes hopeful. “Please, let me touch you. I want to, so bad.”

Keith couldn’t really argue against that. He let go of Lance’s hands, resting his own on Lance’s chest, never once breaking the rhythm of his hips. He hummed in pleasure as Lance’s hands rested against his thighs, running up and down the bare skin as Keith moved.

And then one of the hands came up to wrap around Keith’s neglected cock, and that humming changed to a pleased groan.

“You were looking a bit left out,” Lance joked, pumping Keith’s cock with long strokes, trying and mostly succeeding to match Keith’s own rhythm. Keith didn’t answer, just threw back his head, changing the angle of Lance’s thrusts inside his body, and started to ride Lance even harder. Lance’s own moans echoed his, and the two of them moved together, racing towards completion.

All too soon, Keith felt a familiar tightness start to grow in his balls, echoed in the tingle of his spine and the curl of his toes. “Lance,” he whimpered, clutching at his own hair and tugging. “Lance I’m so close.”

“Me too, fuck,” Lance breathed, his hand on Keith’s cock moving more erratically by the second. “Fuck, you feel so good, this is so good. So good, so good!”

He came with a loud cry. Keith moaned above him, feeling thick spurts of come filling him up inside, continuing to buck his hips. Lance’s hand on his cock had stilled when he came, but it only took a second to bat it aside, wrapping his own fingers around it and jerking. He came not a moment later, spilling thick white come all over Lance’s chest and stomach, hissing with pleasure.

When it was over, they just rested for a moment, breathing hard. Then, with a tired groan, Keith pulled himself off of Lance, wincing as Lance’s spent cock slipped out of him. He padded silently into the bathroom. There was the sound of running water, and then when he returned it was with a damp cloth in hand. Lance didn’t even bother to raise his head as Keith wiped him down.

After Keith had disposed of the dirty cloth and returned to the bedroom, Lance reached out toward him with one tired hand, making weak grabby motions. Keith huffed, abandoning the sweat pants he’d been trying to put back on, and wandered back to the bed. He grunted when Lance pulled him back down beside him, but went without complaint, even when Lance shifted them around so that they were spooning, with Keith being the little spoon.

“That was nice,” Lance hummed against the back of Keith’s neck. “I can’t wait until you fuck me.”

Keith laughed softly, pulling Lance’s arm more tightly around his waist. “Maybe tomorrow,” he offered, his voice pitched low.

“Promise?” Lance asked hopefully. Keith just laughed again, bringing Lance’s hand up to press a kiss against his knuckles.

They fell asleep like that, curled up around each other, happy and safe and home.

 

==

 

They saw Kolivan, Inok, and the rest of the Blade of Marmora that had joined them for the mission off the next day. The Galra had made a point of leaving a few more crates of the food pellets for the team, which Hunk had accepted with an excited grin. Lance was looking forward to the crazy creations he’d come up with now that he had a few more ingredients to use.

As the team was shuffling off to the shuttle to take them back to their latest hideout, Inok briefly peeled away from the group, coming to a stop in front of Keith and Lance. The two of them shared a confused glance, but both gawked in surprise when the massive Galra fell to his knees, pressing his face to the ground at their feet.

“I am so sorry that I failed to protect you,” Inok told them, his voice muffled against the floor. “It was my job to keep you safe, and I failed.”

Both Keith and Lance immediately fell to the ground next to him, tugging him upright by his shoulders.

“No, no, no, dude!” Lance quickly protested. “It’s okay! We’re okay! It wasn’t your fault, none of us knew that the hub had a security system like that. You were just trying your best!”

“Yeah, and besides,” Keith added, “If you’d actually still been with us when we were found by the Galra, they probably would have caught on a lot faster that there was something wrong. It’s for the best we got separated.”

“Exactly. So no hard feelings,” Lance finished, giving Inok a big grin. “We’re just happy you made it out okay.”

It was hard to read Inok’s expression, his face was just as flat and blank as Kolivan’s, but Lance thought there was a hint of a smile tugging at his lips. “You are truly honourable people,” Inok told them, a touch of wonder in his tone. “It was my pleasure and my privilege to be able to work with you both. I hope I have the chance to do so again in the future.”

“And we would be happy to have you at our backs, Inok,” Keith responded seriously. The two Galra shared a long look, before Keith and Inok clasped hands. When they let go, Inok repeated the same motion with Lance, who felt kind of like he’d just witnessed some kind of initiation ceremony. Was he going to get a luxite blade next?

But then Inok was rising to his feet, Keith and Lance rising with him, and it was time to say goodbye. Kolivan made them promise to contact the Blades as soon as Pidge found any hint of Shiro in the data they’d extracted, and then left them with a respectful nod. Lance waved happily as their ship pulled out of the Castle of Lion’s hangar, watching them go until the engine lights became just another star in space. Then he turned back to the rest of the group.

“Well that was fun,” he announced cheerfully. “Now what?”

Most of the team gave him varying exasperated looks, but he noticed that Keith’s was more fond than anything. He dared to toss Keith a wink and a kiss, figuring there was no time to expose the rest of their group to his open flirting like the present. To his pleasant surprise, no one even blinked.

“Well I had better get back to work on decoding that data,” Pidge announced, already heading towards their workroom with a tablet under their arm. “At the rate I’m going, it’ll only take me a couple decapheebs to get through it all.”

“Do you want help?” Allura offered, sounding hopeful. Pidge gave her a thoughtful look before shrugging and nodding.

“Sure, I could probably use a second pair of eyes.”

“I, on the other hand, should transport these food crates down to the storage areas next to the kitchen,” Coran said cheerfully, already piling the crates onto a trolley to be wheeled down. In seconds he had the crates stacked one on top of the other, so tall that he couldn’t actually see over them as he started pushing the cart. The three remaining Paladins watched him go for a moment before sharing a worried look.

“I should probably help him,” Hunk said, wincing when Coran’s cart hit the lip of the doorway and the pile of crates wobbled dangerously.

“Me too,” Keith sighed. “No offense, Hunk, but between the two of us, I think I’m a bit stronger now. If those things fall, it’d be better if I catch them.”

“Works for me,” Hunk agreed readily. “I’ll keep an eye on them, and warn you if I see it falling. Lance?”

“Actually, I was hoping to spend some time with Blue,” Lance told them, jerking his thumb towards the Blue Lion’s hangar. “Haven’t had a chance to visit with her since before the mission, you know?”

“That’s fair,” Hunk agreed. And then he turned to follow after Coran, tossing over his shoulder, “See you at dinner!”

Keith started to go after him, but he was stopped short by Lance’s hand on his wrist. He turned back, his lips already forming a question, only to be kissed soundly by Lance. He gave a little pleased hum, smiling into the kiss and letting his eyes slip closed.

When Lance pulled back, he had a huge grin on his face. “I’ll see you in my room tonight, right?” he asked hopefully.

Keith just gave him a smile of his own. “Of course. You couldn’t keep me out if you tried.”

“Looking forward to it,” Lance said. And then, with another quick peck on Keith’s cheek, he darted off, whistling an off-tune song as he went and all but skipping.

“God, Lance, can you make it any more obvious that you got laid?” Keith muttered to himself. But then again, he probably wasn’t much better himself. So, shaking his head and sighing, Keith turned back towards the hallway, trailing after Hunk and Coran.

And if there was a bit of a spring in his step, and if his ears were a bit more perky and fluffy than usual, well, no one dared say anything to his face.

**Author's Note:**

> Here's the usual links to my tumblrs: [i-see-london-i-see-klance (Voltron blog)](http://i-see-london-i-see-klance.tumblr.com/) and [ikiracake (main)](http://ikiracake.tumblr.com/). Come say hi if you'd like!


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